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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27008044">A Treacherous Thing</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shivani/pseuds/Shivani'>Shivani</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Compilation of Final Fantasy VII</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Brother/Brother Incest, Forced Drug Use, Forced Sexual Age Play, Genital Shaving, Light Angst, Light Bondage, M/M, Parent/Child Incest, Sexual Roleplay, Smut, Underage Sex, cross-dressing</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 01:35:24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>41,816</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27008044</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shivani/pseuds/Shivani</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>An unfortunate mix-up changes Cloud’s life when Palmer unexpectedly hauls him away on his day off. But he gains a perverted new family out of the monumental cock-up, and starts a new job as a Turk.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Rufus Shinra/Lazard Deusericus/Cloud Strife</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>49</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. 01: [ν]εγλ 0001</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p><strong>1</strong>. Title comes from the song <em>The Lovecats</em>, by The Cure. (And as an 80s girl, I am always happy to declare them musical geniuses.) I almost went with something from <em>Primary</em>. I also almost went with something from <em>Let’s Go To Bed</em>, but the lyrics in that one didn’t really fit. I’d have considered <em>Play For Today</em>, but too much of that didn’t fit.</p><p><strong>2</strong>. I don’t even pretend any of this makes sense (but maybe it does) or is remotely believable or even interesting (but maybe it is). I’m trying to get something resembling a plot in here, but… I’ve been sleep deprived through a lot of this (fuck you, insomnia).</p><p><strong>3</strong>. This doesn’t end with everything neatly resolved. Considering the entire thing was predicated on a single mishap and a subsequent meeting, it went a lot deeper and longer than I originally anticipated. So yeah, don’t expect much to be tied up in a neat bow.</p><p><strong>4</strong>. Timeline might be a bit screwy, because I just don’t feel like fitting all this together like puzzle pieces.</p><p><strong>5</strong>. And then I gave up and decided it might be crack treated seriously. Or maybe I should be calling this “abrupt genre shifting”. I don’t think this can be called humor, so probably not crack in any sense? I don’t know (fuck you, insomnia).</p><p><strong>6</strong>. I’m assuming the age of consent in Midgar is sixteen (as opposed to small towns and villages, where it could easily be less), hence the underage sex tag.</p><p><strong>7</strong>. Deepground isn’t a thing. I simply can’t be bothered to account for that.</p><p><strong>8</strong>. No, I have no idea if one of the techniques I mention would even work, and I don’t care.</p><p><strong>9</strong>. Written: 2020 09 26 - 2010 10 13. Initial assembly: 2010 10 13.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
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</div><h2 class="h2alt">01: [ν]εγλ 0001</h2><p>Cloud was minding his own business when he was grabbed by the arm by a corpulent man in a suit and dragged away. “Hey, what the—!?”</p><p>“Shut up! You’re late!” the man hissed, then jabbed him in the neck with something.</p><p>The next thing Cloud knew, after his senses mostly came back to him, he was stark naked and being fitted with a diaper. “What the…?”</p><p>“President Shinra is going to be very upset if he doesn’t get what he ordered, so stop asking stupid questions and let me do my job.” The man reached to the side and grabbed a glass of what looked like milk. “Drink this.”</p><p>He accepted it unhappily. If the president was involved…</p><p>“Now!” the man snapped. “Unless you want to end up as an experiment in the science department?”</p><p>Cloud cringed. He tossed back the milk quickly and set the glass down. He had heard stories about what nightmares went on there and wanted no part of it. Though, he wasn’t sure exactly what was about to happen, and whether or not it might be worse. He was in a diaper for fuck’s sake!</p><p>Five minutes of fussing later (which included him being ordered into a massive crib on wheels) the fat man frowned, then fetched another glass of milk and ordered him to drink it. Cloud didn’t object that time as he was starting to feel pretty hazy, and drank it down a bit sloppily. The glass tumbled out of his hand, though the fat man caught it before it hit the floor and shattered. The fat man smirked happily and nodded to himself.</p><p>“Palmer!?” came a shout from a connected room. “Where the hell is my baby!?”</p><p>“Almost ready, President Shinra,” Palmer shouted back. “There was a problem with the train, sir!” Palmer looked him over and frowned, then grabbed something from a box. It looked like a short, fat cock with a flat disc at the base and a ring protruding opposite.</p><p>‘A pacifier,’ his hazy mind produced.</p><p>It was jammed into his mouth. He would have been horrified if he could be that he started sucking on it just like a baby would. It had been coated with something sweet and rather tasty. And maybe it was filled with the substance and it seeped out the tip in response to his sucking.</p><p>A moment later his crib was wheeled through a door and into a very large room, but he was a bit too busy sucking to pay close attention to the décor, though it did strike him as being ostentatious. President Shinra was there, the man on half the posters in Midgar, looking happily down at him.</p><p>“Such a sweet baby,” Shinra cooed. “Daddy will take good care of you, baby boy.”</p><p>Cloud blinked slowly and kept sucking. He just knew once he was in his right mind again he would be so mortified he would want to crawl into a hole somewhere and just die, but for the moment whatever Palmer had drugged him with kept him from caring.</p><p>The president tickled Cloud’s stomach, which made his increasingly urgent need to urinate ramp up. He had been on his way to visit the toilet prior to leaving the building when Palmer dragged him off, and being made to drink two full glasses of milk was not helping in the least.</p><p>His arms and legs refused to work right, so the most he could do was flail around and suck on his cock pacifier. The sounds he managed to make just caused the president to beam and tickle him more. Cloud squirmed around unhappily and tried to avoid the president’s fingers, but that just made the man beam again and try that much harder.</p><p>Cloud was vastly relieved when his bladder emptied into the diaper he was wearing, and also quietly mortified. The distinctly uncomfortable feeling of the warmth of his piss spreading through his only clothing was just…</p><p>The president mock gasped and said, “Ah! Did baby go wee and piddle himself? Daddy will have to clean you up now. You might get a rash otherwise, baby. Palmer! Give me a hand.”</p><p>“Yes, President Shinra!” Palmer waddled over and assisted the president in lifting Cloud out of the crib and onto a comically oversized changing table, then fell back again.</p><p>The president carefully unwrapped the diaper and chucked it into an attached bin, then grabbed a cloth, wetted it in a soapy mixture, and moved to clean Cloud’s privates up. But, he paused, frowning. “Palmer, why the hell does this whore have pubic hair!? You know I hate it when they have body hair! Fetch a razor.”</p><p>“Yes, President Shinra!”</p><p>The president began cleaning him up for real, which felt nice to Cloud’s clouded mind, and made him somewhat aroused being touched like that by someone other than himself. Palmer then lathered cream onto him and shaved off all the hair down there.</p><p>“Under his arms, too,” the president ordered.</p><p>“Yes, President Shinra!”</p><p>Cloud had no idea he was ticklish there until Palmer lathered on more cream. All the squirming he did caused the president to firmly hold him in place so he couldn’t move and wouldn’t make Palmer mess up and cut him. He was wiped down with a soft, damp cloth, and then Palmer drew back out of the way.</p><p>A new diaper was put in place and the president cooed at him, then popped the pacifier out and shoved a sippy cup into his mouth. “Drink up, baby. Daddy wants to make sure you don’t get dehydrated.”</p><p>Cloud was fairly certain as he swallowed down the milk that the earlier drinks were laced with something other than just a mind-hazing drug, because he could already feel his bladder starting to feel full. It seemed like there was twice as much milk in the cup as it could reasonably hold, because it felt like he’d been drinking forever.</p><p>“And now some yummy food, baby,” the president said, then started spooning mush into his mouth.</p><p>‘Who knew President Shinra was so weird?’ he thought hazily as he accepted far too much in the way of mushed vegetables and swallowed it down.</p><p>“Such a good baby,” President Shinra said, “but you’ve been a little messy. Don’t worry, baby, Daddy will clean that up for you.” The man set aside the bowl and spoon and bent down so he could lick Cloud’s mouth and lips.</p><p>Cloud was freshly mortified when the president’s tongue invaded his mouth and he was being kissed. His first kiss, and it was taken by a man old enough to be his father, and while he was drugged up and unable to resist. Then again, it was not the first time his mouth had been taken advantage of.</p><p>The president spent far too long kissing him, one of his hands (or possibly Palmer’s) reaching down to press lightly on his stomach and lower abdomen in a steady rhythm. He groaned in resignation. His bladder was becoming quite insistent again, and he knew he’d be pissing himself shortly.</p><p>The president pulled back with a beaming smile. “Baby likes that, doesn’t he! Daddy will give his sweet baby more!”</p><p>One of them kept lightly pressing as the president ravaged his mouth, and then his bladder let go again, flooding his diaper with warm piss.</p><p>“Ah, sir…?”</p><p>The president pulled back with a smile and nodded. “Seems my darling baby wet himself again! Daddy will take care of that, baby, don’t you worry.”</p><p>Cloud resigned himself to being cleaned up again and absently accepted the cock pacifier being jammed back into his mouth; it had a new coating of tasty and sweet. He started sucking again as the president gently washed his now twice-naked privates.</p><p>“Look, Palmer,” the president said. “Baby is getting excited. He just loves to be washed.”</p><p>“He does indeed, President Shinra,” Palmer said with a chuckle.</p><p>“Don’t you worry, baby, Daddy will help,” the president told him in a confidential tone. “Daddy will take excellent care of his baby.”</p><p>Cloud hazily watched the president bend down and take Cloud’s cock in his mouth. The president started to suck on it, which made his cock harden from the direct stimulation—</p><p>‘There must have been aphrodisiacs, too,’ he hazily thought as he sucked harder on his pacifier. ‘Or in this thing.’</p><p>—which made the president bob his head, slide his tongue around, and suck harder. Cloud came with a muffled groan of pleasure, momentarily letting his mouth go slack as an orgasm ripped through him with his cock as the epicenter.</p><p>The president sucked him dry and straightened up, looking mighty pleased with himself. “Such a good baby,” the man said as he fondled Cloud’s cock, making him twitch at how sensitive he felt.</p><p>“Ah, sir…?”</p><p>The president glanced at Palmer for a moment, then nodded. “You’re right, Palmer. Baby hasn’t gone poo yet. I’ll have to help him along.”</p><p>Cloud’s eyes widened in alarm and he stupidly tried to talk. The pacifier garbled everything he tried to say.</p><p>The president beamed again. “Ah! Baby is looking forward to it, I see. Such a good baby. Palmer, give me a hand.”</p><p>“Yes, President Shinra!”</p><p>Cloud was flipped onto his side and something slender shoved in his ass. Moments later he could feel something entering him—a liquid? The president kept playing with his cock and running his hands all over Cloud’s body possessively as more and more liquid was pumped into him.</p><p>He could feel cramps starting, almost like he was on his way to a case of the runs, and he groaned around the pacifier at the discomfort. He was feeling uncomfortably bloated and his bladder was filling up yet again on top of that.</p><p>“I just knew whores love enemas,” the president said quietly to Palmer, who chuckled again. “Maybe we should do it twice? Just to be absolutely certain he’s nice and clean.”</p><p>“Yes, President Shinra. Why look, he’s nice and hard again. He’s practically begging you for it.”</p><p>“Quite right. You supervise that while I take care of this baby boy’s need.” The president pulled something out from the side of the changing table and knelt down, then starting sucking his cock again, coaxing another orgasm out of him as his bladder continued to fill and his ass was pumped full.</p><p>He groaned in pleasure again as he exploded into the president’s mouth, which just made the man suck harder so he could drain him dry, and then he hazily realized he was being repositioned. The something slender in his ass (‘A nozzle, maybe?’) was removed and his body was tilted.</p><p>“Release it all, like a good baby boy,” the president cooed at him.</p><p>Cloud relaxed and felt Gaia knew how much liquid gush from his ass, leaving him to feel deflated and empty. He was beyond caring at that point about embarrassment, though he knew he would feel differently once he was away from this insanity.</p><p>“What a good job, baby!” the president cooed at him. “Once more, Palmer.”</p><p>“Yes, President Shinra!”</p><p>A nozzle was shoved up his ass again and more liquid was pumped into him. If nothing else he wouldn’t have to take a shit again for ages. It felt like enough liquid to have backed up all the way to his stomach, and they were doing it a second time! And there went the president again, fondling his cock and coaxing him to hardness, then sucking the life out of him with another explosive orgasm.</p><p>He was told to release again and did so gladly, then rather enjoyed having someone clean up any mess with soap and a damp cloth. The drugs were really doing a number on him. Or maybe he was secretly a pervert and just never knew it?</p><p>The final indignity was when the president said, “And now it’s time for baby’s treat.”</p><p>Palmer chuckled quietly. A sleeve of some kind was placed around Cloud’s cock; it was hard for him to see properly, but it looked as if tubing was attached to the bottom of it. Palmer started pressing his lower abdomen again and he felt his bladder let go, the rush of piss entering that tube and swirling away.</p><p>He was repositioned so that he was hanging face-down off the end of the changing table, sleeve still on his cock, and someone (Palmer most likely) started lubing up his ass. In no time flat President Shinra was sliding his cock inside Cloud and fucking him hard and fast.</p><p>The pacifier still in his mouth garbled every sound he made, making all of it seem like he was loving the feel of a cock slamming into him, and not objecting to being raped.</p><p>“What a good baby!” the president panted. “He loves Daddy’s special treatment.”</p><p>“That he does, Mr President, that he does.”</p><p>“Yes, Palmer, you can give him a treat, too. <em>After</em> I’m done. Baby is very eager, after all.”</p><p>“Yes, President Shinra!”</p><p>The president groaned and thrust harder, then jerked to a stop. Cloud could feel tremors, minuscule thrusts, and assumed the president had just come inside him. The president moved away only for Palmer to move in and shove his much fatter cock up Cloud’s ass, all so he could be given another “treat”.</p><p>Cloud was mortified when the man kept hitting something in there that sent shocks of pleasure through him and he ended up having another orgasm, that time into the sleeve around his cock. Palmer also came, probably turned on even more that he got Cloud to come, then pulled out and shoved something up Cloud’s ass.</p><p>“There. Now he won’t leak on his way out of the building,” Palmer said quietly.</p><p>“Excellent work, Palmer. Expect a bonus.”</p><p>“Thank you, President Shinra!”</p><p>“Now get the whore ready to go. It’s time for me to take a nap.”</p><p>“Yes, President Shinra!”</p><p>The table was rolled out of the room with Cloud still dangling off it and the door closed. He felt a sharp slap across his ass before the sleeve around his cock was removed, then Palmer hauled him up and sat him down in a chair.</p><p>“What the…?” he said once the pacifier was removed from his mouth.</p><p>Palmer slapped him hard across the face; it made him come out of the haze a little. “Don’t give me any lip, whore. We could both see how much you enjoyed the experience what with how many times you came. You’re a true slut, blondie, be proud. Here’s your pay, 10,000 gil.” He gestured at a sack on the side table.</p><p>“If you’re lucky President Shinra will call for another blond whore and you can be his beloved baby again, earn some more gil. Here’s a temporary key card so you can leave this floor, and I want you gone as soon as you’ve recovered. Try not to get yourself killed in the slums, because I’d love to fuck you again like the needy slut you are.” Cloud was slapped across the face again before Palmer exited the room.</p><p>“Oh, Gaia,” he whispered. “The hell was that? I just got drugged and raped by the president? A friggin’ rapist took my virginity?” He buried his face in his hands, ignoring the sting he felt, and groaned. Even the bullies in Nibelheim hadn’t gone that far. They’d only held him down, called his mouth too pretty to resist and said he was begging for it, and forced him to suck all of them off. They did it every time they managed to catch him, which was far too often, but it had stopped once Cloud got strong and fast enough from his training on the mountain to outrun or fend them off with a sword. And then he got the hell out of there.</p><p>Being mistaken for a slum whore on his day off was not something he ever expected to happen.</p><p>He sat up and sighed, then slapped himself a few times to try to get the haze to recede faster, then slowly stood up and found his clothes so he could get dressed. Whatever Palmer had shoved in his ass was uncomfortable, but he really didn’t want to leak come all over the only outfit he had on hand, so he left it there for the time being.</p><p>The gil went into his pocket, the card to his hand. He assumed it would give him access to the lift. He walked out the only door open to him and quietly entered the lift, hit the button for the ground floor, and rode the lift down. He was never going to live this down if anyone found out, but he would be damned if he would go hide in a dark room and waste the remainder of his day off.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>“Lazard, check this out,” Rufus said, intently eyeing a bank of screens.</p><p>“What is it, brother?” Lazard scooted his chair over to join him. “What the…?”</p><p>“Palmer just mistook one of the infantrymen for a slum whore and gave him knockout drugs.” Rufus looked away from the screens so he could access his computer, hunting down information on the blue-eyed blond.</p><p>“Cloud Strife, from Nibelheim, came to us by way of Rocket Town, then Junon. Fifteen, living mother, no known father. His records say he’s anti-social, disrespectful of authority, suspicious of people in general, and they think he’s being bullied by his peers, though there’s nothing concrete in the files.”</p><p>“There wouldn’t be,” Lazard said. “The idiots in Public Security seem to think that bullying is normal and <em>should</em> happen. Heidegger is a prime example of that with how he treats his men. They even let the SOLDIER hopefuls indulge in that, much to my disgust. It means far too many idiots end up as SOLDIER 3rd Class.”</p><p>“And then you do your best to send them off to die?”</p><p>“You’re damn right I do. We don’t need imbeciles hopped up with mako enhancements terrorizing the populace or any infantrymen who go along on missions.”</p><p>A further look at the screens showed that Palmer had dragged the kid up to the president’s floor and was stripping him down. He tapped a few keys and zoomed in on the kid’s face.</p><p>“Is it just me or…?”</p><p>“I think it’s not just you, brother. If I didn’t know any better I’d say we have another half-brother. We need to get genetic material to run some tests.”</p><p>“Well,” Lazard said, “do you want to involve the Turks, or should I follow him once he’s sent away. Maybe I can get something off him we could use. You’re keeping copies of this, right?”</p><p>“Of course, brother,” Rufus said smoothly. “This is prime blackmail material. We can get our father to do what we want with this kind of gold.”</p><p>“And the kid? If he is our brother, we should help him. He’s—oh.”</p><p>“I had no idea that our father was that perverted.”</p><p>“He’s wearing a diaper! A diaper, brother, and he’s being forced to piss himself. …If he is our brother, we need to offer him help.”</p><p>“Well, if he is and he accepts our help, I’ll have to do some digital manipulation to change the face. Make him appear to be just another slum whore, so no one can use this against him. Wouldn’t do for our own brother to be subject to blackmail, now would it.”</p><p>“Shinra has some weird kinks,” Lazard said faintly.</p><p>“And the boy looks so drugged up that he can’t help but go along with it and enjoy himself. No one moves like that unless they’re completely out of it. The next time the kid gets into another fight we can have one of the lesser-known Turks play doctor, patch him up, and get what we need for the tests. Let’s keep this quiet for now.”</p><p>“An enema?” Lazard said. “I wonder what that feels like.”</p><p>“We can always try it, brother,” he said, glancing over so he could leer at Lazard.</p><p>Lazard hummed. “Yeah, maybe, let me think about it. Our father sure seems to like sucking cock. It’s a wonder he’s ever even been with a woman with how into this he seems. I take it this sort of thing is a regular occurrence.”</p><p>“Of course. But it’s normally actual whores, and this is the first time I’ve seen the baby scenario. The president usually has a whore brought in, fucks them while they butter him up with gushing praise, tosses over some gil, and Palmer escorts them out. Nothing that strange, and nothing we could properly blackmail him with. This, however… This is a prime opportunity for us.”</p><p>“And we might even get a third out of the deal.”</p><p>“He does look delicious, brother. I’ll get my Turks to keep an eye on him so they can swoop in with medical care. Once we know for sure….”</p><p>Lazard hummed. “Palmer certainly doesn’t skimp on the slaps. 10,000 gil, huh? Maybe I <em>should</em> follow the kid. It’s his day off judging by the clothes, so he might want to go spend some of that money he was just forced to earn.”</p><p>“If you like. The moment we have a sample we can move forward. Just don’t be seen if possible.”</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Cloud became very nervous and nearly bolted when he was informed that Vice President Shinra wanted to see him. And by want it was clear that meant will, that it was an order. His CO sneered at him and sent him on his way. He stumbled out of the office half convinced he was going to his own execution.</p><p>There was a man out in the hallway. He had long black hair, pulled back at the crown into a tail, and a strange mark in the middle of his forehead. He was garbed in a clearly expensive dark blue suit that fit perfectly and made the man look oddly intimidating. Cloud was pretty sure the man was a Turk.</p><p>“Strife, follow me.”</p><p>“Yes, sir,” he said quietly, then walked behind the man as he was led to the lift bank.</p><p>Shortly thereafter the man had led him to an office on one of the higher floors and knocked on a rather unassuming door, then opened it and gestured Cloud in. Cloud hesitated, then complied, and the door was shut behind him.</p><p>Inside was an office of sorts, though it looked too cozy in comparison to President Shinra’s glossy showpiece of an office. This one had potted plants, warm browns, luxurious gold accents, and more texture than shine. Two men were seated on chairs in a little grouping, both blond.</p><p>“Strife. Welcome to my office. I am Vice President Rufus Shinra. With me is director of SOLDIER Lazard Deusericus. Please have a seat.”</p><p>He wiped his clammy hands on his trouser legs and swallowed hard. “Yes, sir,” he said quietly, then awkwardly walked over and dropped into a chair.</p><p>Both men smiled, almost warmly (which confused him), and Shinra pressed a button on the arm of his chair. The table there split to reveal a rising screen. After another button press Cloud was horrified to realize what he was seeing. His face heated up so bad he thought he might die from self-combustion, but he couldn’t tear his eyes away, nor did he dash away the tears that fell from his eyes over the shame of it all.</p><p>The playback stopped abruptly when Cloud stopped being able to breathe right. He was trying so hard to get air into his lungs and it just wasn’t working like it should. His vision was starting to go black and he just couldn’t breathe and the next thing he knew he was being lifted up off the plush carpet and sat back in the chair. He immediately buried his face in his hands so he didn’t have to see their faces.</p><p>“Why did you join Shinra Company, Strife?” the vice president asked.</p><p>What came out was muffled by his hands and his utter mortification.</p><p>“You will answer, Strife, or Daddy Shinra is going to have another session with his baby.”</p><p>He dropped his hands and mumbled, “I joined for several reasons. One was to get away from Nibelheim. Two was because like every other idiot out there I saw posters of General Sephiroth and wanted to be in SOLDIER, to be strong so that people couldn’t…”</p><p>“Well, I have gone over your records so far,” the director said, “and I have to say it’s not looking good so far.”</p><p>“I know,” he muttered.</p><p>“For one, you need to discard what’s holding you back. You’re far too concerned with what other people think. You tend toward sullen, suspicious, and argumentative with peers and authority figures, and are constantly targeted because they perceive you as weak and easy prey.”</p><p>“Right this second I think I have every reason to be suspicious of authority figures,” Cloud muttered to his lap.</p><p>The two men laughed.</p><p>“Oh, Strife,” the vice president said. “Shinra Company is cutthroat. That you’re willing to say that is a good sign. What isn’t good is that you refuse to say it with your head held high and staring us boldly in the eyes.”</p><p>“So I should be proud I was used like that and I’m now being blackmailed?” he choked out disbelievingly.</p><p>“You certainly seemed to enjoy it when Daddy Shinra made you come so many times and then fucked you in the ass, Strife,” Rufus said mercilessly. “Or was I imagining all those moans of pleasure?”</p><p>Cloud curled in on himself in further mortification. The heat radiating from his cheeks made him think he could fry an egg on it.</p><p>“Would it interest you to know that we had some tests run?” Rufus continued. “As it turns out, Daddy Shinra really is your daddy, just like he’s my father, and Lazard’s father.”</p><p>Cloud’s head snapped up in horror. “What…?” he whispered.</p><p>“That’s right. I’m not sure why no one ever saw the resemblance before, after you arrived in Midgar. You are half-brother to us, and we’re willing to give you a hand up.”</p><p>“While blackmailing me the whole time,” he said sneeringly.</p><p>“Ah! You didn’t hide for that one,” Lazard said proudly. “We’ll make a man of you yet, Strife.”</p><p>“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”</p><p>“Do you still want to be in SOLDIER?”</p><p>Cloud swallowed and paused to think about that. “I want to be able to fight, but I’m not so sure now that SOLDIER is the answer. I spent a lot of time fighting back home, on the mountain. I’m not bad at it. You’d never know it with how Public Security starts you off with guns. I can barely hit the broad side of a barn with one.”</p><p>Lazard and Rufus shared a look.</p><p>“Then what about the Turks?” Rufus said.</p><p>“I’m not even sure what they do, just that people seem to be scared of them.”</p><p>“They’re Shinra’s dogs, Strife, just a different kind of dog from SOLDIER. They do whatever needs to be done, all the dirty, underhanded jobs that a SOLDIER would turn his nose up at. Not honorable enough, they’d say, not heroic,” a smirking Rufus said.</p><p>“The same Turks who’ve probably been watching that footage, laughing about, and probably beating off to.”</p><p>“Yes, those Turks. But no, they’ve not been watching it. It was captured by me,” Rufus said, “and the only other person who was there to see it was Lazard. Since SOLDIER seems to be out, the Turks are your best bet. The Turks are a family, they protect their own.”</p><p>“And that video?” he asked, not really getting what their angle was.</p><p>“If you became a Turk, that footage would be digitally altered to show an actual whore’s face and hair, and no one would ever know it was you dragged into that,” Rufus said with crystal clear confidence. “That altered footage could be used to blackmail President Shinra,” Rufus said. “That’s much more interesting than just having him assassinated.”</p><p>“You might be able to alter the footage to change my face, but … Daddy … won’t forget so soon what I look like,” he objected.</p><p>Rufus held up two spheres of materia, which Cloud looked at curiously. “Manipulate and Mystify,” Rufus said to the questioning twitch of his brows. “You allow us to help you, our brother, and Daddy Shinra won’t remember a thing about your real appearance. Nor Palmer.”</p><p>“Turks use guns, don’t they,” he said unhappily. “The man who escorted me here had one.”</p><p>“And other weapons,” Rufus replied. “But yes, you would be taught how to use one. Properly taught, not that farce that only masquerades as training. One of the Turks uses a mag-rod. Some specialize in shuriken, or katana, or martial arts, or explosives. They all know how to use a gun, though.”</p><p>Cloud nodded, feeling slightly less likely to go fling himself off the plate in despair.</p><p>“Another main responsibility of the Turks is information gathering,” Rufus said. “That includes seduction techniques, yes.”</p><p>Cloud grimaced.</p><p>“Remember, Strife, Manipulate Materia,” Rufus said. “But I don’t care if they fuck people for real in order to get the information they’re sent after. People sometimes say such interesting and revealing things in the afterglow, and everyone needs some pleasure in their lives.”</p><p>“That was my first time,” Cloud mumbled. “I’m pretty sure that’s not how it happens for most people, drugged and raped.”</p><p>Rufus and Lazard laughed, though not especially mockingly.</p><p>“We could show you for real, Strife, just say the word.”</p><p>Cloud twitched, not sure if he was feeling turned on or horrified. “Y-Your own brother?”</p><p>“Why not?” Lazard says. “Rufus won’t turn on me, I won’t turn on him. We have to stick together, support each other, cover each other’s backs in the quagmire of corruption that Shinra Company is. Daddy Shinra is a disgusting fat fuck who can’t remember to use protection when he’s in the mood for a female whore or a normal woman he entices with promises of marriage and wealth. Thankfully he wasn’t terribly fertile, and once we realized what he’d been doing, we made sure he wasn’t at all. No more bastard sons left to rot in the slums. Or in your case, rot in a backwater after the mother fled from heartbreak and betrayal.”</p><p>Cloud frowned. Now he knew why his mother would never talk about his father. “And would you have a camera trained on that, too, to ensure my compliance?”</p><p>Rufus and Lazard laughed again.</p><p>“Only if you want us to, brother,” Rufus said teasingly. “How about we adjourn to my personal VR room and see how good you are with a blade?”</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Rufus brought up a room that vaguely resembled the Nibel area. Cloud was amazed at how real it all felt, how far the land stretched. He could almost feel the bite of cold snow as he looked around in wonder.</p><p>“Cloud.”</p><p>His attention snapped back to his … brothers.</p><p>Lazard gestured toward a rack of blade. “Choose what suits you best.”</p><p>He nodded after a second and went to the rack so he could eye the offerings. He pulled off a tsurugi and tantō, though he slid the tantō through the ring at his hip. He wanted to use if offhand, but had only the one sword in Nibelheim, so he wasn’t sure how well he could duel wield.</p><p>“What did you fight most commonly there?”</p><p>“Wolves. I wanted to do more, but I wanted out of Nibelheim more than taking on harder prey.”</p><p>Lazard nodded. “We’re more interested right now in <em>how</em> you fight. What you fight—or rather, what you’re capable of fighting—can be worked on later. I’ll set the simulation for Nibel wolves, a wave of ten sets. At any time we can stop. Just call it out and I’ll end the waves.”</p><p>Cloud nodded. A few seconds later he saw wolves appear out of nothing and went to meet them. Now that he finally had a blade in his hand and felt like he was in familiar territory, he ignored the two men and just fought, all the way through the tenth wave.</p><p>“Not bad,” Lazard said. “Not bad at all. What do you think, brother?”</p><p>Rufus hummed agreeably. “Clearly, he’s wasted as an infantryman. Cloud, did you learn because you had nothing better to do in that backwater, or because you were forced to due to having ventured too far out?”</p><p>He swallowed uncomfortably. “Both. Let’s just say I wasn’t well liked and spent time outside town. The first wolf that came after me I had to beat to death with a branch.”</p><p>“Not well liked,” Rufus said. “Though oddly enough you were by the other boys.”</p><p>Cloud just about flung his sword at the man for knowing that and bringing it up. “You sent someone there,” he accused.</p><p>“Yes. We wanted to know more about our brother,” Rufus said. “The boys there were so happy to brag about what a good cock sucker you were, how you were such a tease and made them chase you and hold you down so you could ‘pretend’ you were servicing them unwillingly. From that we came to the conclusion that you learned how to fight so you could both make them back off and so you could leave.”</p><p>“Yes,” he bit out.</p><p>Rufus nodded and glanced at Lazard.</p><p>“The simulation felt real, yes?” Lazard asked.</p><p>Cloud blinked at the abrupt change in topic. “Yes.”</p><p>“So if we were to try an experiment… Say, give you a gun and let you try again with that, just one wolf. You know it’s not real, but it feels real. It might help you to get a feel for honestly using a gun. Or, you can try to duel wield, as I can tell you’re wanting to try.”</p><p>“I… Duel first.”</p><p>Lazard nodded. “I’ll bring in just one wolf, so you can figure out how that works for you. Ready?”</p><p>He took a deep breath, pulled the tantō out, and nodded. It didn’t go badly, in the end. It didn’t feel horribly awkward, and he was able to bring down the wolf in a reasonable amount of time despite the change in tactics.</p><p>Lazard nodded. “Also not bad. Ready to try a gun?”</p><p>He exhaled in a huff and nodded. The swords went back on the rack and he accepted a handgun from Rufus. The very fact that they had brought him in and gave him real weapons made him a tiny bit more trusting. Not that he thought he stood a real chance if he attacked either of them. It was much smaller than what he was used to, as infantrymen used rifles as standard. Normal ones, anyway. People higher up in rank had armored suits with machine guns and beam or arc swords.</p><p>Rufus patiently showed him how to change the clip, handed him a half dozen extra, and stepped back, so Cloud moved out on the field again and nodded to Lazard.</p><p>He would admit, with flushed cheeks and minor mortification, that his first clip was wasted just figuring out how to aim properly while an entirely too real feeling wolf snarled and snapped and lunged at him. He hit the button to drop the clip and slammed a new one in, realizing that evasive tactics were just that, and he could still use what he knew.</p><p>The second clip went much better, though he was torn between aiming for the center mass and trying for a kill shot through the head. In the end he brought it down after he managed to shoot out a leg and some of the pressure was off him. A bullet to the head saw the thing dissolve like the others had, and Cloud panted in the aftermath.</p><p>“Brother, I’m getting the distinct feeling that Cloud here learns best by doing, not by aiming downrange at a paper target or hacking at a pell.”</p><p>“I agree,” Lazard said, “which means Public Security is absolutely the worst place for him. SOLDIER is also not a good fit. Will Tseng give you any problems?”</p><p>Rufus shook his head. “And once I finish doctoring that footage and the president is dancing to our tune, I will be able to have control of the Turks transferred to my purview as vice president. Heidegger has them right now and he’s completely incompetent as their overseer. Even Tseng admits to that.”</p><p>“How did the handgun feel, Cloud?” Lazard asked him.</p><p>“Not as bad as I expected. And I think you’re right about me learning better by doing. The rifles they’ve been training us on have a lot more punch, but I find them really unwieldy and awkward. The weight is all wrong. And shooting at a paper target is just boring and my mind wanders.”</p><p>“One of the training missions the Turks take rookies on is down in the slums, where they can get up high so the monsters can’t easily get them. That way the rookies can work on their aim in a real fight, but not be in so much danger that they panic,” Rufus explained. “So how about it, Cloud? Willing to become one of the Turks?”</p><p>“…Yes.”</p><p>“All right. I’m going to go speak to Tseng,” Rufus said, then exited the room.</p><p>Lazard smiled and said, “If you’d like to keep practicing we can do that. Swords, the gun, whichever. Rufus will return once things are set up. He’ll have a Turk fetch your belongings from the barracks and get a room set up for you in Turk territory.”</p><p>“You… You actually…” He just couldn’t voice that question, but wanted to know the answer.</p><p>“Have sex with my half-brother?” Lazard said. “Yes, frequently. It’s a matter of trust, Cloud. You might be amused to know that when I saw what the camera was showing, one of the first questions out of my mouth was to wonder what an enema felt like. Rufus immediately offered to set things up so we could try it ourselves.”</p><p>Cloud flushed hotly despite feeling he wasn’t being mocked.</p><p>“We take turns, Cloud, with who gets fucked and who does the fucking. You’re welcome to join in, if you’re interested. You are our brother, after all, and we take care of our own. I’ll even suck you off right now to show you I’m serious, or let you fuck me.”</p><p>The gun nearly dropped from his hand as a wave of arousal swept through him. ‘Oh, Gaia, I really am a pervert,’ he thought. Lazard was beautiful, so was Rufus, nothing like the president. He felt plain in comparison.</p><p>“Give it some thought, Cloud,” Lazard said, making him feel a keen sense of disappointment that the man hadn’t pushed harder. “How about some more practice while we wait?”</p><p>“Y-Yeah.”</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Rufus smirked as he listened in on the conversation happening between Lazard and Cloud. Lazard was quite good at being soothing and coaxing people, but he could be just as ruthless as Rufus himself. He didn’t doubt for a second that Cloud would be joining their bedrooms activities, it was just a matter of how long it took for Cloud to admit to himself that he wanted it.</p><p>Once the sounds of combat were back he crossed to his office door and invited Tseng in. “You have a new Turk, Tseng.”</p><p>Tseng dipped his head in a nod. “The boy.”</p><p>“Yes. Our brief testing shows that he learns actively, with some measure of danger involved, so you’ll have to plan for that. You’ll need to send someone down to collect his things from whatever shithole they have his group in and assign him a room, get everything else handled. I would appreciate it if you would ensure he has time occasionally to spend with me and Lazard, once a week at minimum.”</p><p>Tseng didn’t speak, but Rufus could see the question swimming behind the man’s eyes.</p><p>“Yes, another half-brother. Don’t coddle him, but neither be too hard. He’s a bit fragile right now. On another note, it shouldn’t be very long before I get the Turks out from under Heidegger.”</p><p>Tseng sighed almost imperceptibly and nodded. “Excellent news, sir.”</p><p>“Send me a message once you have everything sorted and are on your way to collect Strife. That way I’ll know to expect your knock.”</p><p>“Yes, sir,” Tseng said, then exited the office.</p><p>Rufus smirked to himself and slowly headed back to the VR room. All that combat <em>should</em> have the effect of letting their youngest brother work off some of the myriad feelings that must be stewing inside him. The shock, the betrayal, the utter mortification… Poor kid. He had it the worst of the three. Even Lazard, with a whore for a mother and a life in the slums, hadn’t been so badly used in his years.</p><p>The panic attack had been expected, though a bit disturbing to witness. Cloud had looked like he wanted to curl up and die on the spot with how much shame he was feeling. He and Lazard would have to show him he was not alone, would not be betrayed by them, and that they would never do anything to him he didn’t agree to or ask for.</p><p>When he quietly slipped back into the VR room Cloud was trying out a longer, heavier sword. It looked painfully awkward, as it was clear his brother simply did not have the upper body strength to properly wield one, even two-handed. Mako injections could remedy that. He and Lazard already gave themselves injections, just enough at first to see if they would react badly, then in higher strength. Special contact lenses blocked the mako shine in their eyes, just like members of SOLDIER used on occasion. They could do the same for Cloud. If he was <em>just</em> a Turk they wouldn’t bother, but as their brother… Well, it served them all to give their youngest sibling some advantages he could call on in a pinch.</p><p>Lazard nodded at him, then said, “I think that one’s out for now, Cloud. How about duel again, with something a little tougher than a Nibel wolf?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Cloud said, sounding a lot more steady than he had been earlier. “This sword is just too heavy for me. I’m more likely to cut off my own foot than kill an enemy.” The sword went back on the rack to be exchanged for the tsurugi and tantō, and Cloud was back at it, facing a new enemy.</p><p>“Tseng is getting things set up,” he said quietly.</p><p>“I heard,” Lazard said, briefly tapping his ear. “We’re going to have to go slow.”</p><p>“That was the impression I got. He sounds much better, though, so this workout is helping.”</p><p>“I think it’s helping to make him feel more in control. Which is of course why my initial offer was from a position of submission.”</p><p>“I think the first time we have sex in front of him we’ll have to be very tender and loving, to make it plain that force doesn’t have to be involved. Make him want to come to us.”</p><p>“I’m perfectly willing to take one for the team, brother,” Lazard said with a slight chuckle. “I’ll even let you rack me up so Cloud can see I can’t possibly <em>make</em> him do anything, so that he is fully in control the whole time.”</p><p>Rufus shifted his weight at that, his cock hardening at the thought of his brother helpless beneath him. Or at Cloud’s mercy. Of course, it was just as arousing to <em>be</em> the one bound and helpless, so long as you had absolute trust in your partner, which he did with Lazard. “As soon as Tseng takes Cloud to his new quarters I am going to fuck you so hard, brother.”</p><p>“I look forward to it,” Lazard said with another slight chuckle. “We need to figure out where our father got that pacifier. In a slightly different form, and with straps, well… That could be interesting.”</p><p>“I’m fairly certain there was something inside it. The way Cloud kept sucking on it says so.”</p><p>“Possibly an aphrodisiac. Ring gags are fun and all, but the drool…”</p><p>Rufus laughed quietly. “I like it when you drool, brother.”</p><p>“I know,” Lazard said dryly. “I’ve decided I do want to try the enema thing. It’s a bit messy, but… Yeah.”</p><p>“All right, I’ll arrange it. I’ve become curious myself as what it’d feel like, being cleaned out like that. Maybe we can get Cloud to administer them.”</p><p>“After we’ve tried privately, just between us. We might not like it.”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “We can also try massage with Cloud. Gaia knows it feels good, not to mention arousing. How did he react when you offered to let him fuck you?”</p><p>“Flushed, aroused, slightly ashamed. Favorably, in other words.”</p><p>“Excellent,” he purred, then looked down at his phone when it twittered at him. “Tseng is on his way, so we need to wrap this up.”</p><p>Lazard nodded and made some adjustments to the scenario. “I’ll bring him out as soon as this finishes.”</p><p>He gave his brother a deep kiss, then exited again, already anticipating the fun to be had once their youngest brother was under Tseng’s wing. And then he needed to finish up the digital manipulation he had already started on. Blackmailing the fat fuck who was their father would be so, so sweet. He would also have to Manipulate and Confuse President Shinra and Palmer to forget Cloud’s face.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Cloud followed Tseng a bit nervously to his new room. Once inside it was clear it was a single, which relieved him. All his things were already there, though he would have to put them away properly. No uniforms, though, but then, he would have to be fitted for the suits the Turks wore. Hopefully he would finally earn enough money (legitimately) to purchase a decent casual wardrobe, though the gil shoved at him by Palmer would be a damn good start, now that he wasn’t afraid to spend it.</p><p>Tseng handed over a key card and said, “This is programmed for several things, Strife. This room and this floor, primarily. It will be upgraded after your training passes a certain point and you are given a higher security rating. The vice president has made it clear that you learn better by doing, so expect weapons training to be live, under semi-controlled circumstances. You’ve been in a VR room, so I expect you’d like to take a shower. Just come out once you’ve refreshed yourself and we’ll see about getting you fitted for uniforms.”</p><p>Cloud nodded. “Yes, sir.”</p><p>Tseng nodded in return and exited the room, pulling the door closed behind him.</p><p>He exhaled and took a closer look at the room. It was nothing special, but it felt absurdly spacious after being crammed into barracks with the other cadets. He even had a window, with blinds to allow or block outside light. Cloud gathered up a spare set of casual clothing and headed into the en suite so he could shower off the sweat of his exertions.</p><p>He was still annoyed at having been shaved, mostly because the hair growing back made him itch and want to scratch his privates or underarms at the worst times. Lacking pubic hair itself did not bother him, though he did think it made him feel younger and bizarrely innocent. The itching was enough to make him want to shave the stubble off, at least between his legs. He supposed if he managed enough trust in his half-brothers he could ask them to shave him.</p><p>The very thought made his cock twitch. “I really am a pervert,” he muttered, then reached down to both soap his cock and start sliding his hand along the length, squeezing gently and stroking. Remembering Lazard offering to suck him off or let him fuck him made him even more aroused. He was so used to being the one used that another person offering to let him be in control really turned him on, that and the idea of getting to orgasm by means other than his own hand.</p><p>President Shinra’s sucking of his cock so many times had been wonderful in retrospect, though a bit slobbery. He could understand why those boys in Nibelheim had expended so much time and energy hunting him down so he could be forced into sucking them off. Thinking about that was making him wilt, so he shifted his thoughts elsewhere, to Lazard’s offer, and trying to imagine the man on his knees, what it would feel like to slide his cock inside him…</p><p>He groaned and braced himself with a hand against the shower wall as his cock spurted in orgasm, his come being swept away by the water and swirled down the drain. Ever since he had turned fourteen he was always so horny. He slowly got his breathing back under control, then moved on to finishing his shower.</p><p>Shortly thereafter he was dried and dressed and ready to leave the room. He wasn’t sure if he would need any money, so he opened the door and caught Tseng’s eye.</p><p>Tseng strolled over and said, “Are you ready?”</p><p>“Will I need anything aside from my ID and keycard, sir?”</p><p>Tseng shook his head. “Do you wish to be called Strife or by your first name?”</p><p>“Uh… Cloud is fine.”</p><p>“All right. Some take on a new name, and that <em>is</em> an option for you. Take your time and think it over. For now, let’s get you fitted.”</p><p>He nodded and exited entirely, pulling the door shut behind him, and let Tseng lead him away. Apparently there was a suite of rooms on the Turks floor where a tailor was stationed, and Cloud was shortly standing there naked but for his boxers and being measured in a multitude of places. The tailor, who admitted to no name, nodded after jotting down the last of the measurements and handed him a shirt to put on.</p><p>Once he had that on and buttoned the tailor started making marks on the fabric, and then the whole process was repeated with a set of trousers, and then a jacket. The tailor reclaimed all of it and nodded. “The usual?”</p><p>Tseng nodded. “A dozen to start. Let me know when they’re ready.”</p><p>“Right.”</p><p>Cloud got dressed again and was led off to figure out shoes and accessories, and finally led back to the residential area.</p><p>“Are you in need of a new wardrobe?” Tseng asked. “I am aware the cadets have precious little space for personal belongings.”</p><p>“…Yes, actually,” he said. “And I wouldn’t know where to begin to find decent clothes. I’ve been making do with what I had from before.”</p><p>Tseng nodded. “Gather up any money you have and we will go handle that.”</p><p>“Thank you, sir.” Cloud ducked back into his room after swiping his card and got the money Palmer had given him, dropped off the accessories and sets of shoes, then exited again.</p><p>Tseng handed over a PHS. “This is heavily encrypted, Cloud, mostly because you’re a Turk, but also because you’ll be in regular contact with the vice president.” Tseng went on to explain how he could access it (eye scan, fingerprint, and a PIN) and pointed out that several numbers had already been added to the contacts list. “If it’s ever lost let me know immediately. We can remote detonate it, and then get you a new one.”</p><p>“Yes, sir.”</p><p>“All right. Let’s go shopping, then. Oh, and, your keycard also gives you access to 51F, where the vice president and director have their offices.”</p><p>Cloud blinked. He had not been paying attention earlier with regard to what floor they’d been on. “I would have expected the vice president to be on a higher floor.”</p><p>“Most do. He prefers the floor he’s on.” Tseng turned away, clearly expecting him to follow.</p><p>He was escorted down to B1 and into a car, then driven into the city. Hours later they were back, with Tseng helping to carry his purchases. He had just unlocked the door and stepped in when his PHS twittered at him. He hastily set his bags down and shot an apologetic look at Tseng, then flipped the phone open so he could read the message as Tseng set his own burdens down.</p><p>“Huh.” He could see that Tseng was curious and not about to ask. “The vice president, inviting me to dinner.”</p><p>Tseng nodded. “When you go up, have your ID clipped in plain sight,” he said, briefly touching his chest. “That way no one will detain you and question why you’re there, since you’re not wearing the suit yet. Do you remember how to get back to the vice president’s office?”</p><p>He sighed and shook his head. He had been far too keyed up to pay attention.</p><p>“Not a problem, Cloud.” Tseng pulled a notepad from his pocket, unclipped the pen attached to it, and jotted down directions. The page was ripped out and handed over.</p><p>Cloud saw that it had directions both ways, to Rufus’ office (which he could backtrack), and to his own room. “Thank you, sir.”</p><p>“You’re free until tomorrow morning,” he was informed. “I will see you then, show you where our cafeteria is, and get you started on training.” Tseng inclined his head and left him alone.</p><p>He set the directions down on the table next to the door and set about removing clothing tags and putting everything away. He was going to have to remember to ask about laundry. Hopefully training would go well and he would stop feeling so damn skittish. A quick stop in the en suite to piss made him notice something he hadn’t before, a set of slatted doors.</p><p>Once he finished he investigated, pulling them open to reveal a washer and dryer. He gawked. “I get my own!? I don’t have to be bored senseless in a communal laundry room? Fuck yes! I haven’t even been here a day and I love being a Turk.”</p><p>He raced out to yank everything back out of the drawers so he could run it all through the wash. Gaia only knew how many grubby hands had been over the various pieces and he was thrilled to death to be able to wash them before wearing any of it. He even threw in the boxer briefs he had picked up, despite them having been packaged in plastic.</p><p>“And as soon as this is taken care of I can toss my old stuff,” he muttered. “Or, maybe keep it for use under the plate when I’m not dolled up in a suit?” He hummed and nodded.</p><p>With that decision made he grabbed a book from the stack he’d picked up while shopping and settled in to read.</p><p>By the time he needed to leave for dinner he had freshly laundered, brand new clothing on. He grabbed his ID card and clipped it on, shoved his keycard in his pocket, grabbed the directions, and headed out.</p><p>That didn’t mean his hands didn’t go all clammy again on exiting at 51F, but he was able to find Rufus’ office without any trouble. He knocked and tucked the directions away safely. The door opened moments later to reveal his half-brother.</p><p>“Cloud,” Rufus said with a smile. “Come on in.”</p><p>He walked through that door only a lot anxious, but doing his best not to let it show, and twitched when he heard the door shut behind him.</p><p>“I hope you’ll like what we’ve cooked, but if you don’t, please don’t think we’ll be offended,” Rufus said, gently touching his arm just above the elbow and ushering him off to a combined kitchen/dining area. “We can always come up with something else.”</p><p>Lazard smiled warmly at him and nodded a greeting. “How was your first day as a Turk?”</p><p>“Oh, uh… Not bad? I mean, nothing much happened. Got fitted for suits and Tseng took me shopping so I had casual stuff. I didn’t have much before. Tseng said training would start in the morning.”</p><p>“The Turks don’t have a VR room,” Rufus said, “but they do rarely use the ones on the SOLDIER floor. If you want to use one without the hassle of dealing with bored SOLDIERs, you can use mine. Just send a message so I’ll know to expect you. I’ll have to teach you how the controls function, or Lazard can, either works.”</p><p>“…Thanks.”</p><p>“Not a problem. You’re our brother, and we’ll help however we can.”</p><p>Lazard shifted full plates to the table and went back for drinks, but paused and looked back. “Would you like wine or something non-alcoholic?”</p><p>“…I’ve never had wine,” he said.</p><p>Lazard bit his lip and nodded. “Then both, in case you don’t like the wine.”</p><p>He was shortly seated and starting on the meal. It looked like chicken, but for all he knew it was chocobo. It was delicious, with a sticky, spiced sauce on it and a variety of accompanying vegetables, most of which he didn’t recognize. Life in the backwater of Nibelheim meant next to no options when it came to meal variety.</p><p>The wine made him wrinkle his nose a little, but it wasn’t terrible. “I think I’d prefer something sweeter.”</p><p>“I’ll make a note of it,” Lazard said.</p><p>He got through half the glass between bites before he started feeling a touch woozy, and immediately pushed it away, switching to the plain juice.</p><p>Rufus chuckled and said, “Yes, first timers need to be quite careful how much they drink. It takes time to build up any tolerance. It’s also always better to eat when drinking, to help mitigate the effects. Being drunk can be highly amusing, but the aftereffects are no fun at all, and a person tends to lose control that heavily under the influence.”</p><p>“Like my former dorm mates stumbling in giggling and acting all weird after a night out?”</p><p>“Yes. Alcohol lowers inhibitions, which is why it’s called a social lubricant. It can make it easier to socialize if one is nervous. Too much, however, and… Some people start blurting out whatever is on their mind, some get depressed and mopey, others cry, and some start flirting with anyone with a pulse and push for sex.”</p><p>Cloud stared for a moment, then looked down at his plate. Rufus was being quite blunt and informative. “This is very good. Thank you for including me,” he said, then forked a green vegetable and popped it into his mouth.</p><p>“You’re welcome, Cloud.”</p><p>“Um, so what exactly do you do as director of SOLDIER?” he asked, missing it when his brothers shared a look of happiness. By the time he did look up Lazard had his head tilted to the side.</p><p>“Coordination is a lot of my job. I am sent mission requests and have to go through each one in order to properly classify them, and then work out not only who’ll be assigned to each, but also any resources that will need to be requisitioned for each. Many of them are monster extermination these days.”</p><p>Cloud got the distinct feeling it was an incomplete answer, but nodded anyway. Some of it might be classified information he had no right to know.</p><p>“Aside from that, I oversee SOLDIER hopefuls in the sense of collecting and collating the results of their training, and try to get a sense of where they might be placed should they succeed. I have to schedule treatments for SOLDIERs as well.”</p><p>“Treatments?”</p><p>“Mako treatments,” Lazard said. “It’s what pushes a normal human to superhuman, and what makes SOLDIERs so effective. In addition to their training, that is. SOLDIER is the most obvious public face of Shinra. It’s a lot of work to keep track of all that.”</p><p>Cloud bit his lip in thought. “Are SOLDIERs the only one who have treatments?”</p><p>“Officially? Yes.”</p><p>“…And unofficially?”</p><p>Rufus and Lazard both smirked.</p><p>“My brother and I have been taking treatments,” Rufus said. “Tiny ones at first, to see if we’d react badly. We are much stronger than normal humans.”</p><p>His brow furrowed. “But your eyes don’t…”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “They don’t glow. SOLDIER has a type of contact lenses they occasionally use to hide the glow. It depends on the mission type. Lazard and I wear those, to hide the obvious sign of our enhancement. If you’re interested in getting stronger, we can try the smallest of treatments, to see if you’d react well.”</p><p>His gut burned for a moment. “And if I didn’t react well?”</p><p>“Then you’d be sick for a while, get better, and the idea would be dropped,” Lazard said. “Better to remain unenhanced in a case like that. Mako poisoning is not nice. That’s why part of the SOLDIER training is testing to see how the candidates react to mako injections. Anyone who can’t handle the test levels is dropped, and either shunted to Public Security or out of Shinra entirely if another department doesn’t take them on.”</p><p>“Another department?”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “Such as if the person in question is very intelligent, which might make them a fit for the science department, though I sometimes question if anyone sane works there. Someone might be a better fit for weapons development. Or the Turks. I’m going to say it’d be extremely rare for anyone to get shunted to urban development. There are also a ton of technicians and maintenance people. And janitors. About the only thing I absolutely wouldn’t expect would be a failed SOLDIER candidate becoming a secretary.”</p><p>“Huh. What happened for you two when you tried the smallest treatment? I mean, what did that feel like?”</p><p>“It burned,” Lazard said. “My stomach was a bit off for several hours. My sense of taste went strange for a couple of days. Nothing unusual, basically, as based on all the reports I’ve collected from the testimony of various people getting treatments. Their reactions were stronger, because once you get passed the test treatment, it’s a lot more mako being injected.”</p><p>He nodded and looked at Rufus.</p><p>“It burned,” Rufus echoed. “I had a little trouble seeing straight for a few hours and my sense of balance was off. All within norms.”</p><p>“And a bad reaction would be…?”</p><p>“Generally, after the test treatment,” Lazard said, “the candidate is observed for four hours, mostly so they can keep track of the reactions to continue to grow the database on that. A bad reaction, however, almost always results in the person vomiting repeatedly within the first ten minutes, generally requiring an anti-emetic and often a saline drip to keep them from dehydrating.”</p><p>“And you’re offering this to me,” he said rather flatly.</p><p>“Yes. You’re our brother, Cloud. If you take well to the treatments you’d become stronger a lot faster,” Rufus said matter-of-factly. “It’d be a lot harder for a fat fuck like Palmer to haul you off somewhere, not that he would ever do that to you once you’re wearing the suit.”</p><p>He squeezed his eyes shut when he felt his cheeks heating up again, then he opened them and nodded. “I’d like to try.”</p><p>“We’ll arrange for it on an evening when you’re not on duty the next day,” Lazard said. “That way we can have what we need if you don’t react well, and if you do, we’ll be right there to make sure you don’t do anything silly, like walk into a wall or trip over thin air and take a header into a sofa.”</p><p>Cloud’s mouth twitched into a near smile. He really, desperately wanted to believe this his newfound brothers actually gave a damn and would help him to get stronger, would watch out for him. But unless he could unbend a little and extend a little trust, he would never know. The test treatment was a start. He was honestly considering asking them to shave him, too.</p><p>“Do you have … the test results? How you knew I was your brother?”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “I can go get them now if you’d like.”</p><p>“Please.”</p><p>Rufus got up and wandered off, to return a few minutes later with a printout, which he placed on the table next to Cloud. He tapped the top and said, “This column is a control sample, just DNA from someone random. The next is President Shinra, then myself, then Lazard, then you.” He went on to explain the results in a way that sort of made sense but also made Cloud’s head spin. There were various acronyms down the side and a lot of number sets in the columns, but he could see that a lot of those numbers matched across the columns, with the exception of the control sample.</p><p>“Okay. I get this enough to accept that you’re my brothers, with President Shinra as our father,” he said, then blurted out, “Will you shave me?” He immediately buried his face in his hands and considered crawling under the table to hide.</p><p>“Sure,” Rufus said. “I take the stubble is driving you crazy?”</p><p>He nodded.</p><p>“We’d be happy to, Cloud, and will do so once we’re done eating.”</p><p>He nodded again as Rufus returned to his seat.</p><p>“You’re rather adorable when you blush,” Lazard said.</p><p>‘Oh, Gaia,’ he thought, then took a deep breath and lowered his hands, raised his head, and started eating again like he wasn’t embarrassed all to hell. He listened to Rufus and Lazard talk as he finished up the meal, then set his utensils on the plate and sat back.</p><p>Rufus and Lazard finished up a minute later, then rose to collect everything and shuffle it over to the sink.</p>
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<a name="section0002"><h2>2. 02: [ν]εγλ 0001</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h2 class="h2alt">02: [ν]εγλ 0001</h2><p>“Do you have a preference who does the shaving?” Lazard asked.</p><p>Cloud shook his head.</p><p>Lazard walked over to him and extended a hand in invitation, then held his as Cloud got up. He was gently pulled into a bedroom. “Go ahead and get undressed.”</p><p>He awkwardly began to strip, laying each piece of clothing on an armchair, as Lazard ducked into an en suite briefly, returning with a small towel, a large towel, a razor, cream, a bowl of water, and a bottle of lotion. A small table was dragged over by Rufus, which Lazard used to set most of his burden down. The large towel was draped over the end of the bed.</p><p>“Just have a seat once you’re ready,” Lazard said almost gently, “and lay back, though it’s fine if you prop yourself up on your elbows if you want to watch.”</p><p>He was shaking a little as he took that seat and leaned back on his elbows. He felt horribly exposed and also turned on. Lazard ran a brush through the cream and started to apply it; it was cool on his skin.</p><p>“If you want to keep it shaved,” Rufus said, “we could make this a regular thing, Cloud.”</p><p>He kept his eyes on what Lazard was doing, but said, “Y-Yeah, maybe.”</p><p>Lazard set the brush aside and took up the razor, then began shaving in small, short strokes, swishing the razor in the water after each.  He was methodical and careful and it was soothing to Cloud, which helped him to relax.</p><p>When Lazard set the razor aside, Rufus grabbed the bowl and headed into the en suite with it, coming back a minute later with a fresh supply of water. Lazard dipped the small towel into the bowl and began carefully wiping Cloud’s newly shaved skin down, removing any remaining cream.</p><p>“Do you want a happy ending, Cloud?” Rufus asked.</p><p>“Uh…?”</p><p>“He’s asking if you’d like to have an orgasm,” Lazard said. “This is a rather intimate act and people tend to get turned on by it.”</p><p>Cloud stared down at his half-hard cock and nodded.</p><p>Lazard reached out to grasp the base of Cloud’s cock and then lowered his head to engulf him, wresting a low groan from Cloud’s lips and an upward jerk of his hips.</p><p>Cloud felt the bed dip when Rufus sat down next to him and heard, “May I kiss you, Cloud?”</p><p>“Y-Yes…”</p><p>His vision was obscured when Rufus leaned in and kissed the side of his mouth, then kissed him again full on, gently but insistently making it known he wanted in. He let his lips part as an answer and felt Rufus’s tongue invade his mouth. His hips jerked up again as Lazard did something indescribable with his tongue and then swallowed his cock right to the root and sucked. Having them come at him from both ends was making head spin with lust and he couldn’t help but drop back flat.</p><p>Rufus followed him down and continued to kiss him, then his mouth slid off to the side as Rufus attacked his neck instead, sucking and giving him little nips. Cloud thought he might pass out from sensory overload as the two worked him over and kept pushing him closer to orgasm. Rufus drifted back over to his panting mouth and started to devour it again and Lazard did that thing with his tongue.</p><p>Cloud felt his balls tighten and started to groan, which made the two of them be a little more forceful. It pushed him over the edge and he just couldn’t help but jerk his hips, pushing his cock into Lazard’s mouth and filling it with his come.</p><p>Rufus slowly pulled away, dropping another kiss on the side of his mouth, then ran a hand over his chest as Lazard drained him dry, then pulled back and started to rub something into his skin. The lotion, he supposed.</p><p>“That was incredible,” he whispered, trying to catch his breath.</p><p>“We’re glad you enjoyed it,” Rufus said quietly.</p><p>“And we’d be happy to do it again,” Lazard added. “The lotion will help to deal with any irritation, Cloud.”</p><p>He nodded dumbly.</p><p>Lazard finished up with a long stroke of his limp cock, then pushed up to a standing position so he could ferry various things back to the en suite.</p><p>Rufus smiled at him, grabbed one of his hands, and pulled Cloud to a sitting position.</p><p>“So I’m a pervert,” he whispered.</p><p>Rufus laughed. “I think it’s genetic. Don’t worry about it. We can make it a weekly date, Cloud. Have dinner, perhaps watch a movie or just talk, then get you shaved smooth and do perverted things to each other.”</p><p>“How perverted?” he heard himself asking.</p><p>“It depends,” Lazard said, emerging from the en suite. “Having sex is fantastic and the orgasms are great, but it gets boring if you only ever do the same thing each time. So we try new things, like tying each other up or using a rack, do some roleplaying like boss and secretary or commander and disobedient soldier. Whatever comes to mind, really. And if one of us doesn’t like it we don’t do it again.”</p><p>“Huh,” he said softly.</p><p>“It’s pretty likely you’ll have the weekend free,” Rufus said. “It takes a while to get those suits made up, and until they have been it’s unlikely you’ll be taken on a training mission. We could spend it together, get to know each other. Do that mako test.”</p><p>“Yeah,” he said, just then realizing he was still naked and not feeling embarrassed by it. “Soon as I know I can send you a message.” He yawned, wanting nothing more than to fall back again, squirm under the covers, and sleep. “I should go get some sleep.”</p><p>They nodded and Rufus slipped off the bed, giving him a hand up. Cloud pulled on his clothing and was escorted to the “front” door. He patted his pocket where he had left the directions from Tseng and then stood there awkwardly. He psyched himself up, darted a kiss to Rufus’ lips, then Lazard’s, then booked it out the door.</p>
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</div><p>The next morning (after some very racy dreams involving his newfound brothers) he was collected by Tseng. Cloud wasn’t sure the man knew how to smile and, as his face like was like porcelain, might actually crack if he did. He was escorted off to the Turks cafeteria, fed actual decent food (nothing like the “nutritional” slop fed to cadets and infantrymen, and that many claimed was made up of pureed ex-experiment and injection molded into something resembling meat or veg), and then set to learning the ins and outs of Turk-dom, such as codes he would need to know so that transmissions did not sound like someone was drugged out of their gourd and babbling random things into their phone or radio.</p><p>Naturally, it was very boring, but he really needed to learn it so he could move on to more interesting things. Thankfully, he only had to do that for an hour at a stretch, as even Tseng knew learning it all was very boring. He was handed off to a redhead who went by Reno (mag-rod primary) and run through various scenarios to see how he’d react to them. And, incidentally, try to weasel Turk thinking and tactics into his head.</p><p>When lunch rolled around he quietly asked Tseng about duty schedules and was told that as a rookie he would have the weekends off, so from 5<span class="sc">pm</span> Friday afternoon until 8<span class="sc">am</span> Monday morning he was free to do whatever, so long as he didn’t give the Turks a bad name.</p><p>He happily enough ate his lunch (though Reno stealing fries off his plate was already getting old) and went back to work on branding Turk codes into his brain. The latter half of his afternoon was spent with tall, dark, and bald (Rude, fists primary) learning how to disassemble a handgun and reassemble it, with the eventual goal of being able to do so in the dark.</p><p>“Why?” he asked.</p><p>Rude stared at him for a long moment (Cloud thought he was staring, at least, because his sunglasses were mirrored and made knowing for sure impossible), then said, “It assists with memory, manual dexterity, and fixing a weapon that has jammed.”</p><p>“Ah. Thank you for explaining,” he said, then started on the task, catching Rude nodding out of the corner of his eye.</p><p>His life was, at the moment, immeasurably better, despite the fact that he was still the boy used as a cock slut in Nibelheim, drugged and used as a whore by his biological father in a very kinky scenario (and paid quite well for it), horny as all get out because of his age, and in a relationship of sorts with his own brothers. Perversion probably <em>was</em> genetic.</p><p>After a nice dinner he retreated to his room and sent a message to Rufus, CC’d to Lazard, then selected a book to read while propped against pillows on his bed. Two chapters in his phone twittered, so he laid the book down and grabbed his phone.</p>
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    <tt>Digital alteration complete. Manipulate and Confusion complete. Lazard and I are looking forward to you spending time with us this weekend. Six o’clock Friday night?</tt>
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</blockquote><p>He smiled and shot back an affirmative, then returned to his book.</p>
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</div><p>If there was one thing to be said about President Shinra it was that he fathered beautiful sons, Rufus thought. Cloud was absolutely adorable and categorically fuckable. He somehow managed to look innocent despite what he’d been through. Rufus neglected to mention the part where, after those Nibelheim boys had been questioned, they had all suffered a tragic accident involving an avalanche (snow, not the terrorist group). ‘Huh,’ he thought. ‘Avalanche dying in an avalanche. Wouldn’t that be something.’</p><p>Dinner was stir fry and eaten in the living room while they watched a movie. The length of it would give his youngest brother enough time to digest some of that food before they moved on to other activities. Once it was over they ferried dishes to the kitchen sink and Cloud turned mildly awkward again.</p><p>“Which would you prefer first, Cloud?” he asked. “A nice shave, or the mako test?”</p><p>Cloud pinked slightly (which was an improvement, though he was beginning to like seeing him blush) and said, “Since there’s a possibility for me to reject it or suffer some odd symptoms, I think the shave first.”</p><p>Lazard fetched what they would need, but Rufus did the shaving with just as much care as Lazard had the first time. He was well aware of Cloud’s heated gaze on his every move, and was pleased that his younger brother seemed to be quickly losing most of his shyness when it came to nudity around them.</p><p>As he gently cleaned up the remaining cream he asked, “Would you like a happy ending, Cloud?”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>“How would you like it?”</p><p>“…Maybe … one of you draining me dry while the other one…”</p><p>“Kisses you? Has you suck them off? Fucks you?”</p><p>Cloud shuddered. “Fucks me.”</p><p>He nodded. “You decide how fast or slow, how soft or hard. You call the shots. But since Lazard got  to taste you last time, I’d like to be the one to suck you off this time.”</p><p>Cloud nodded and shuddered again as Rufus started massaging in the lotion to guard against irritation. “Won’t that make things taste funny?”</p><p>“It’s edible,” he said simply, “and fairly flavorless. It also comes flavored, but those taste too fake to be enjoyable.” He could tell his matter-of-fact tone was helping Cloud stay relaxed, not that the blond’s cock was. It was trying to stand up at attention and beg for it. Young men his age were often a bundle of hormones and gagging for it, which just made it simpler to seduce him. Rufus was nothing if not opportunistic. He gave it six months or less before Cloud was an eager participant and pushing for it.</p><p>His lotion massage was getting more and more sensual and Cloud’s breathing was starting to stutter. “It’ll be easier to be taken from behind, so my suggestion is to get on your hands and knees. I’ll just slide in underneath so I can taste your cock.”</p><p>“Y-Yeah,” Cloud said breathlessly and reluctantly pulled himself back onto the bed properly so he could get into position.</p><p>As Lazard began to lubricate Cloud’s anus, Rufus slipped in underneath, very deliberately laying so that his own cock was available to Cloud should he take the bait, then captured that weeping cock and started to work it.</p><p>Cloud let out a funny little grunt-groan and jerked as Lazard pushed his cock into the blond.</p><p>“Remember, Cloud,” Lazard said. “You call the shots. You tell me, slower or faster, softer or harder.”</p><p>Rufus, ruthless bastard that he was, did that thing with his tongue that Lazard was more than happy to teach him, and attempted to smirk around Cloud’s cock as his younger brother let out a throaty groan.</p><p>Lazard was being very careful with Cloud, going nice and easy, waiting for a signal or a word to go faster, go harder. The odd muffled squeak told him that Cloud was likely biting his lip and his older brother was angling his cock to hit the prostate. Rufus might be able to get twice the prize out of the youngest brother, but he’d settle for one so as not to be anything resembling a reminder of what Daddy Shinra had done.</p><p>“H-Harder,” Cloud breathed, then groaned when Lazard complied.</p><p>Five minutes in and Cloud stopped breathing out orders. He dropped his head and finally seemed to notice the cock waving under him and went for it. Rufus groaned around the cock in his mouth as Cloud’s warmth enveloped him and worked him over but good. Clearly, the young man had been trained very well during his forced encounters in Nibelheim, and he and Lazard were the lucky recipients. Because Rufus? He would disappear anyone who dared to touch his brother without permission.</p><p>Cloud managed to get him to come twice before he and Lazard finally pushed Cloud over the edge. Rufus was suddenly convulsively swallowing, taking everything his younger brother could give him and applying suction to coax out more.</p><p>Once Cloud was dry he laved him a final time, almost lovingly, then slid away. He popped back up so he could plant a kiss on Cloud’s lips. “A happy ending, brother?”</p><p>“Yes,” Cloud replied. He looked like he might say more for a moment, but bit his lip instead.</p><p>“You want to try the mako test, or would you prefer to wait a while?”</p><p>“With me feeling this relaxed? Let’s do it.”</p><p>“We just did, Cloud,” Lazard teased. “You’re saying you want round two?”</p><p>Cloud huffed a laugh and sat back. “Later. I’m going to savor my first time willingly taking it up the ass, okay?”</p><p>He and Lazard laughed quietly.</p><p>“A nice attitude,” Lazard said. “I’m going to get things set up. We can all talk while you’re under observation.”</p><p>Rufus watched as Cloud pulled on a pair of boxer briefs (and wondered how his younger brother would respond to silk ones) and sat in the chair Lazard had brought in, then held out his arm for the injection. What Lazard actually did was set up the start of an IV in case it should be needed, and only then gave Cloud the injection, in his other arm.</p><p>Cloud winced when even that tiny amount hit his bloodstream, but Lazard immediately distracted him with questions about his week, what he thought of the Turks he had met, and anything really to keep Cloud talking and his focus off the mako.</p><p>When they passed the ten minute mark Rufus allowed himself a slight sigh of relief, but refused to trust that it would be all right until a lot more time had passed. Rufus gloated a little about blackmailing the president (which Cloud first wrinkled his nose at, then laughed about), and mentioned that he had successfully taken over as the head of the Turks, though Tseng would remain in immediate control of the group.</p><p>Then he and Lazard moved on to discussing foods.</p><p>Cloud started yawning an hour in.</p><p>Lazard hauled Cloud out of the chair, sat down, and pulled Cloud onto his lap. “Just sleep if you’re tired. It is getting quite late. Once the full four hours have passed, we’ll just move to the bed, all right?”</p><p>Cloud nodded sleepily and curled up against Lazard. He was asleep not a minute later.</p><p>“So far so good,” he commented.</p><p>Lazard hummed. “I expect it to be fine. Would you grab a light blanket, please?”</p><p>“Of course, brother.” He got up, fetched one, and draped it over their sleeping brother. “He’s feeling clammy, I take it?”</p><p>“Yes.” Lazard cocked his head to the side, angled slightly downward toward Cloud. “Breathing is good, no tremors, no nerve sparks.”</p><p>“Then hopefully he’ll just sleep through it. And hopefully we can play again tomorrow.”</p><p>Lazard rolled his eyes. “It can’t all be about sex, brother.”</p><p>“It’s not,” he protested. “He’s a delightful conversationalist once he forgets to be shy. There’s so much to teach him! Show him that once we’re done, once he’s learned to be a Turk, it would take a situation of exceptional luck for someone to get the better of him.”</p><p>Lazard sighed. “Yes. And we will! But we only have the weekends with him right now. Once he bumps up in rank his schedule will be a lot less stable. I’m just as committed to this as you are, but we can’t have him here every night and every weekend. He’ll need time to himself, or to hang out with his fellow Turks. Now take this opportunity to tell me more about how you blackmailed the fat fuck. Gloat all you like, because I’m all ears.”</p><p>Rufus smiled evilly. “I’m fairly certain after I played a clip from that footage that Daddy Shinra both pissed and shit himself. It was a little difficult to tell right then and I’m wondering if we should upgrade the cameras in there. He has no idea it was me, of course.”</p><p>“You’re not that stupid,” Lazard said loyally, and with utter sincerity.</p><p>He shot his brother a warm smile. “After a few rounds of showing him different clips he started to cave and asked what I wanted. I tossed a whole list of demands at him, of which leadership of the Turks was one of the seemingly less important ones.”</p><p>“Which of course made it one he would pick,” Lazard said, “because he’d try to make you back off with enough of the smaller ones, rather than really feel the pain.”</p><p>He nodded. “I got a memo about it—Daddy Shinra saying I was ready for more responsibility and wasn’t he so proud of his fine son—with a follow-up of official documentation.”</p><p>“And as you’ve never asked for it, or even hinted at it, he shouldn’t connect his blackmailer to you,” Lazard said with a nod. “We could always get more, brother. Work up some kinky scenarios, use that materia, and the next thing you know we’re taping Daddy Shinra getting pegged, or treated to a dominatrix, or even in a diaper himself while Mommy tends to his needs.”</p><p>He tried, oh he tried, but in the end he burst out laughing.</p>
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</div><p>Cloud woke up warm and cozy and hemmed in. He realized after his brain started to wake up that he was between his brothers, and that he was still wearing the boxer briefs. That was nice, because them having removed them while he was unconscious would have made things feel sorta wrong.</p><p>Being in his right mind while having a cock up his ass made it a much nicer experience, that and having that level of control. There was a hand on his ass, but that was all right. He’d seen that often enough, people getting a bit grabby in their sleep. Well, usually it was drunken cadets who had passed out in the same bed and then got handsy.</p><p>Cloud never went drinking with any of them, as that would be like begging for one of them to take advantage of him, but he had seen them wake up enough times with hangovers, and mortified when they realized they were copping a feel of another cadet’s ass, or cock, or had their face nuzzled into a neck.</p><p>Of course, he was beginning to think there was a disproportionately high number of gays working for Shinra, or men who were in denial that they liked cock, or fucking people with cocks. And Gaia, he really had sex on the brain lately. And he was lying in a nice, cozy bed with two gorgeous naked men who were willing to do perverted things with him.</p><p>He sat up suddenly. He felt normal, perfectly normal. And he needed the bathroom.</p><p>“Hm?” one of his brothers mumbled sleepily.</p><p>He squeaked when a hand groped around and yanked him back down, then an arm draped over him and pulled him close. He could just see the clock over the line of his brother’s shoulder. It read 0800. He gently pushed the chest in front of him (he was fairly certain it was Lazard) and said, “Let me up, I need to piss.”</p><p>Another sleepy murmur sounded, then Lazard abruptly shifted back and sat up, then stood up so Cloud could exit the bed. “Of course, Cloud.”</p><p>He dashed into the en suite so he could take care of that pressing matter, then washed his hands and returned to the warmth of the bed, then wordlessly asked Lazard to get back in, which he did. “Thanks.”</p><p>“You feel all right? No odd sense of smell, seeing weird colours, hearing sounds that don’t make sense?”</p><p>“I feel all right. Nothing weird. But if you want to stick with the tiny ones for a few more rounds until we’re all certain, that’s okay. How long do or did you normally wait between them?”</p><p>Rufus pressed up against him from behind and murmured, “Once a month, two weeks for the tiny ones.”</p><p>“So plenty of time for anything odd to surface before the next one,” he mused. “And how far will you go? Or have? How do you even know, uh…”</p><p>Lazard opened his mouth, closed it, then said, “Every response to that in my head is perverted.”</p><p>“How full we are, Cloud?</p><p>“The level of saturation sounds better,” Lazard said, coughing slightly. “Or ratio.”</p><p>“Compared to a SOLDIER 1st Class?” he suggested. “And I really am beginning to believe Rufus when he says perversion is genetic. I should be completely messed up after what happened, not … not being a pervert. I feel like I should be breaking down or something, not kinda thinking, ‘Oh well, it’s more of the same as back home, right?’ Or something. And at the same time I feel like I’m fast losing my—like my give a damn is busted, and I’m not sure I give a damn that it is. Though, well, the bit with the blackmailing is good, because hopefully he’s quaking in his fuzzy bunny slippers and hoping not to shit himself, and—”</p><p>Rufus interrupted with, “As best I can tell, he did shit himself when the mysterious blackmailer showed him a clip from that footage. He had the most interesting look of dismay, unhappy relief, terror, and shame on his face. That’s how I interpreted it, anyway. And when I told Lazard about it he came up with the most interesting ways to manipulate Daddy Shinra into giving us more blackmail videos.”</p><p>“So, breakfast?” Lazard asked.</p><p>“Waffles?” he said hopefully. “With real maple syrup? I had that just the other day in the Turk cafeteria and it was divine. And don’t think I’ve forgotten the question I asked.”</p><p>Lazard rolled to the side and dropped his legs so he could stand up, presenting a fantastically-toned ass for Cloud’s eyes, then ambled into the en suite, presumably to empty his bladder.</p><p>Cloud scooted sideways and rolled over to look at Rufus.</p><p>“We don’t know yet, aside from that it’s not as high as a SOLDIER 1st Class. It’s a lot slower and more gradual for us, partly to allow us to adjust more easily, and from that be able to hide it more easily. My best guess is to say that Lazard and I are around 3rd Class right now. And that took two years.”</p><p>“All right,” he said as he could hear Lazard exit the en suite. He saw his brother walk by a minute later, dressed only in a set of silky boxers, on his way to the door.</p><p>Rufus sighed. “Time to get up, I suppose.”</p>
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</div><p>Cloud was beginning to get all the codes he was supposed to learn branded into his brain, which was good. Sitting down and reading a work-type book was never his thing. Tseng showed up Monday afternoon and hustled him off to the tailor area where he was handed a suit to put on so the tailor could check the fit.</p><p>Thank Gaia he had enough sense not to be wearing silk boxers during work hours, because less than a minute with a pair of those on and moving at all made him hard as a rock. He would never get anything done with silk caressing his privates like a lover all damn day.</p><p>The tailor eyed him up and nodded.</p><p>Tseng dipped his head and pointed Cloud at the remaining eleven suits hanging there, and he was shortly back in his quarters so he could make use of the wardrobe and toss his original clothing into the hamper, plus put on the correct socks, shoes, and tie. He looked almost respectable, or would if not for his unruly hair.</p><p>All he needed to do was get The Look down (he was certain Rufus could help him with that), the one that said he would cheerfully jump-rope with a person’s entrails and laugh while doing it if they annoyed him. People wouldn’t snigger and make rude comments about his hair.</p><p>Back in their office space Tseng said, “Now that you’re properly attired you can go on training missions. Handgun, of necessity. Depending on what can be found in the slums, you can also work with those two blades. Once you’ve become more accustomed to the types of creatures to be found around here, possibly other weapons. Reno and Rude will be leading and they will handle any emergencies and healing.”</p><p>“When will I be getting materia instruction, sir?”</p><p>Tseng’s brow went up, but he said, “Second week, Cloud. Assuming this week of training goes well we will add materia use. Once you have the basics down, and the time frame for that varies from person to person, you will move on to sparring with other Turks in addition to the other lessons. Basically, as you begin to master one thing, the time allotted for it will decrease to make room for something else, and be dropped entirely at some point, unless it becomes clear that you require a refresher.”</p><p>“So a rotation kind of thing.”</p><p>Tseng dipped his head in a nod.</p><p>“Thank you for the clarification, sir.”</p><p>“Rude and Reno will be with you shortly. Take that time to prepare,” Tseng said before walking away.</p><p>Cloud immediately checked his gun, the clip in it, and how many clips he had on him, then moved on to his swords. Getting those to not be noticeable while wearing a suit had been a real trick. The tantō went into a sheath down the back of his neck. It was slightly awkward to ready, but doable. The tsurugi was thirty-five inches long so he had no choice but to use a magnetic “harness” so he could just snap it into place over his back. The gun at least could go into the harness under his jacket. Due to the way the jackets and the pockets of the trousers were designed, the weight of extra clips didn’t ruin the line of the suit.</p><p>Thankfully, those suits were to be dry-cleaned, so he could add them to the cleaning rack for the regular pick-up and get them back on a hanger outside his door.</p><p>The very thought of someone like Tseng or Rude looking less than perfect was inconceivable. Reno, on the other hand…</p><p>“Cloud, yo!” the red-haired Turk greeted him with. “Let’s plow.”</p><p>A lift ride, another lift ride, and they were walking atop the abandoned wrecks of the train graveyard.</p><p>“There’s not really much to normally worry about down here,” Reno said (Rude rarely ever talked, he had noticed, relying almost entirely on familiarity with his fellows and body language). “So just get that gun out and start practicing. Every critter you take down is one less critter that might escape and hunt down a kid or something. You know, ’cause they’re easier to catch.”</p><p>He grimaced at the mental image, pulled his handgun out, and started aiming.</p>
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</div><p>Lazard steadily worked through the missions that entered the queue. Some of those requests were far too bare of detail, and those were always shunted to Tseng so that Turks could be sent out to quietly gather more.</p><p>Anything that came into his queue <em>from</em> Tseng was given priority for that reason. Beyond that, as he had told Cloud, he had to determine who worked best for the mission, what supplies he would have to requisition, and arrange for transport if required. That also sometimes involved Tseng, as Turks were all taught piloting, at least of helicopters.</p><p>His PHS twittered so he took a break. It was Cloud, asking if he could have lunch with him. Lazard smiled. It was good to see their younger brother opening up to them, asking to spend time with him, and not just waiting for an invitation. He sent back an affirmative along with some quick directions, and returned to his queue.</p><p>Some time later he looked up at a knock on the frame of his door and smiled warmly. “Come on in. Let me just finish up this current assessment and we can get something to eat.”</p><p>Cloud nodded and helped himself to a seat, looking curiously around the office. Like Rufus, Lazard tended toward a more homey approach, partly because all that gleaming marble left him cold, and partly to make people feel more comfortable while in his domain.</p><p>Unfortunately, he did not finish up quickly enough, as two of his SOLDIERs wandered in and stopped dead on seeing a Turk there.</p><p>Cloud’s normally blank expression served him well. He looked at the SOLDIERs, appearing decidedly unimpressed, and looked away, to Lazard instead.</p><p>“What can I do for you, SOLDIERs?” he asked.</p><p>“Uh…” Kunsel said eloquently. “We were hoping something new had come in we could take care of.”</p><p>“There are a few things in the queue, but the requisitions need to be done first,” he replied. “Since I know that you two are feeling antsy, I’ll make sure you’re assigned to one of them.”</p><p>Kunsel nodded. “Thanks, Director Lazard.” He ducked back out with Luxiere.</p><p>He quickly finished up the last of the work for the mission and thumbed the switch for his monitor. “We only have about a half hour, so how about something simple?”</p><p>“Sure.”</p><p>He got up and headed through a door at the back, Cloud following, and into his kitchen. He tossed together a quick salad with boiled eggs and nuts for some protein, and served it along with soft drinks. “The SOLDIERs are a bit antsy of late, since the war with Wutai ended. I don’t think most of them enjoyed being on the front, but with fewer opportunities for missions…”</p><p>Cloud nodded. “Now that I have the opportunity to get in decent training, I find I somewhat miss it during days off, but not so much that I’d go after it. Rufus’ VR room is enough for that.”</p><p>“No matter how much normal training a SOLDIER undergoes, there’s nothing quite like being in the field and not always knowing what to expect. It helps to push a person to be better, more flexible in their responses. Well, that and exercise makes your body release chemicals that make you feel good. Wouldn’t surprise me in the least if half the SOLDIERs are fucking each other as another way to use up excess energy.”</p><p>“And in theory because there’s less risk?” Cloud asked.</p><p>He nodded, pleased that his younger brother was starting to get into the mindset. “The SOLDIER program doesn’t actively discourage relations with non-enhanced humans or civilians, but it’s not encouraged, either, due to security concerns. And let’s face it, an enhanced human could easily break someone normal.”</p><p>“Hence why you and Rufus are so careful with me. Or, part of it.”</p><p>“Yes. One of the things Rufus and I wish to do is to help desensitize you to how ill-used you’ve been. Not to make you think it all wasn’t suffering and abuse and just plain wrong, but to make it such that other people, should they ever find out, cannot use it against you, can’t get you to react. If they can be made to believe, in a hypothetical situation of that nature, that you just don’t give a fuck if it was splashed all over Midgar, they have nothing to use as leverage.”</p><p>Cloud looked down and ate a good part of is salad before saying, “I can understand that. It’s painful when you do it, but your expressions are saying you aren’t doing it to be cruel.”</p><p>“We’re not, never that. Now, if we were talking about someone else entirely, someone who wasn’t our brother, well… Rufus and I can be very ruthless.”</p><p>“Will I need to be?” Cloud seemed somewhat apprehensive.</p><p>He shrugged. “We’re ruthless enough for the three of us. I expect you’ll be … somewhat, simply by virtue of Turk training. Some people just don’t get a charge out of triumphing over others.”</p><p>His younger brother hummed. “No, I can see where a Turk would need a certain level of ruthlessness and determination. So far it’s miles better than being in Public Security. They’re all complete assholes in comparison. Reno likes to tease and be kind of a dick, but I can tell it’s all in fun. I might have to stab him if he keeps stealing off my plate, though.”</p><p>He laughed.</p><p>“What about going out into the city? The three of us?”</p><p>“Mm. You might have to play the part of Turk bodyguard for Rufus, just so people don’t look too hard at things. Rufus never goes out in public without at least two Turks. But yes, it could be arranged. Movies, plays… Dinner would be slightly more complicated, unless the place had private rooms. Still doable. Just let one of us know. I realize that Public Security wouldn’t have given you much of a chance to explore.”</p><p>“My days off, but I stayed above the plate,” Cloud said after he finished the last of his salad. “I thought it’d be safer. Gaia knows what could happen down under.”</p><p>“You’ll probably hate hearing it, but you’re pretty enough for the Honeybee Inn to be thrilled to have you as one of their own.”</p><p>Cloud grimaced. “I take it that’s a whorehouse?”</p><p>He nodded. “Surprisingly high class and expensive. Wall Market has a lot to offer, for those who can afford it. Don Corneo runs that sector of the slums. He’s an absolute dirtbag, but Shinra keeps him on something of a leash.”</p><p>“Why is he tolerated?”</p><p>“He is allowed to operate, his criminal activities overlooked, so long as he provides information about conditions in the slums, and any groups moving there, such as terrorists. He knows that if he gets too out of hand or rebels he’ll be killed and someone else will rise to his position.”</p><p>Cloud shook his head and shrugged. “Unfortunately…”</p><p>“Yes, we’re just about out of time. You’ll be late if you don’t get going.” He got up to shuffle things to the sink, then said, “May I kiss you before you go?”</p><p>“Yeah.”</p><p>He smiled and moved closer, waiting for Cloud to stand up, then placed a hand at the back of his brother’s head and leaned in to score a lovely deep kiss that made him want so much more. When he pulled back he said, “I’ll see you this weekend, if not sooner.”</p>
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</div><p>“We need to do something about those mako reactors,” he said to his brother. “They’re horrifically inefficient. And that bullshit with Scarlet’s so-called experiments with making huge materia inside them… It’s not like we need a second mako cannon. The one we have can target just about any place on the planet already.”</p><p>“We also need to do something about Hojo,” Lazard replied. “I’ve been keeping track of all the whispers and rumors, many of them from my SOLDIERs, and it’s not just mako he’s shooting them up with. I’ve noticed over time that a SOLDIER can always tell when Sephiroth is anywhere nearby. The 1sts are especially sensitive. I can’t sense him, so I know it’s not just mako they’re getting.”</p><p>“Avalanche is starting to move toward the idea of blowing the reactors. Perhaps we can steer them toward starting with the outlying ones, to … perfect their technique. Assuming they have the sense to do it at night when fewer people are around, there should be little to no loss of civilian life. As for Hojo… It’s going to be exceptionally difficult to get cameras in his two floors to see what he’s really up to.”</p><p>“Let’s start with the reactors, then.”</p><p>“Yes, let’s.”</p>
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</div><p>“Holy smokes, yo,” Reno said. “They fuckin’ blew up a reactor.”</p><p>“Huh?” He looked over to see Reno going through the paperwork coming off the printer.</p><p>“Yeah, Avalanche moved, blew the Mt Nibel reactor sky high. Pieces of it were hitting miles away, but thankfully most of that was mountain and not the nearby Nibelheim and Rocket Town.”</p><p>Cloud felt his heart stutter. There was every chance his mother still lived, then, even if he wasn’t exactly close to her, not after so much secrecy.</p><p>“Odds are they’re gonna send some of us to investigate,” Reno continued. “Maybe even you seein’ as how you’re a native of that backwater.”</p><p>He couldn’t decide if the idea upset him or not. He might have to suffer those bullies to some extent, but it could be seen as an opportunity to keep a Turk mask in place. He finished up his reading for the day, waved a farewell to his comrades, and headed to his room so he could shower and change.</p><p>Half an hour later he was in Rufus’ kitchen having dinner with his brothers. The terrorist attack was the subject of the day.</p><p>“Hojo is on a rampage,” Lazard reported over dessert. “Apparently he had something important at the Mt Nibel reactor and he’s out for blood.”</p><p>“Couldn’t happen to a nicer psycho, then,” Rufus replied. “Anything that upsets him is probably a good thing.”</p><p>“Reno seems to think the Turks will be sent. Me, possibly, as part of that.”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “I wouldn’t doubt that either Daddy Shinra or Hojo will put in a request. With you being a native, well… It would cut down on expenses, presumably, in their eyes.”</p><p>“Not sure how,” he said, forking up another bite of cheesecake. “I never went all that far up the mountain, certainly not to the reactor. They’d need a local who knew the mountain, assuming none of them have already been there.”</p><p>Rufus shrugged. “We’ll see what happens.”</p><p>Shortly thereafter Cloud was naked on the bed, watching as Lazard shaved away the stubble that had developed during the week. He’d grown to really enjoy the quiet little ritual, the demonstration of caring. That and it made him horny as all get out.</p><p>While Lazard was cleaning him up and massaging in the lotion, Rufus was undressing. Lazard finished up with a long sweep of Cloud’s cock, then stood and undressed as well.</p><p>Rufus pulled a card from a box and hummed. “Doctor and patient.”</p><p>“I’ll be the patient,” Lazard said. “I’m hoping that Cloud here will be your assistant and use his cock up my ass to, uh, feel around for anything out of the ordinary. You can see how well the treatments to remove my gag reflex have been progressing.”</p><p>Rufus smirked in response. “Up for it, Cloud? Or would you prefer to watch for now?”</p><p>“I’m game,” he said. His cock was certainly willing. A glance down showed the tip was already weeping pre-come.</p><p>Rufus kicked a metal plate on one wall and part of it slid aside. An exam table was rolled out from within, a foot pedal depressed to lock the wheels, and Lazard hopped up and proceeded to look anxious. “Doctor?”</p><p>“Ah, yes,” Rufus said, pretending to be reading from the clipboard hung from the end of the table. “Let us proceed, then. Please bend over the table, arms out,” he said professionally.</p><p>Lazard slid down and turned around, then bent over to let the table support him, arms out to the sides. Rufus quickly wrapped leather cuffs (chained to the table itself) around each wrist and buckled them. “Just so you don’t move around too much, you understand. Spread your legs, please.” When Lazard complied, his ankles were likewise restrained.</p><p>Cloud watched as Rufus fetched a pair of latex gloves and a bottle of lubricant, then started slightly when his older brother looked his way.</p><p>“Assistant, please prepare the patient’s ass. I’m thinking three fingers by the time you’re done.”</p><p>He got up and took the gloves, wore them, then opened the bottle so he could squirt some onto his fingers. He had no idea what he was doing, but he was going to learn, ‘on the job’ as it were. He slid one finger inside his brother and, when a look at Rufus showed the man was miming what he wanted done, started to slide that finger in and out, pushing lightly at the ring of muscle as he did so.</p><p>Rufus mimed two, so Cloud added a second and gently finger fucked his brother, then three when prompted.</p><p>“Excellent, Assistant. Move aside for a moment.”</p><p>Cloud stepped out of the way and watched Rufus pull a shiny, duck-bill-shaped device out of a drawer, then insert it into Lazard’s ass. A squeeze of the handles wrested a pleased groan out of Lazard, much to Cloud’s fascination.</p><p>Rufus hummed and nodded. “Seems to be going well,” he said, then whipped out a penlight so he could shine it inside, not actually bothering to look at what it revealed. Rufus hummed again. “No, I’m afraid we’ll have to do things the old fashioned way, Patient.”</p><p>“O-Oh… I see…”</p><p>The penlight and device were put away, and Rufus slid a sleeve onto Lazard’s cock, rather like the one used on Cloud. “Just in case there are any emissions, Patient.”</p><p>“Uh, yes, of course,” Lazard said faintly.</p><p>“Assistant, I’ll need you to handle this part,” Rufus said to him, arching a brow at him.</p><p>“Yes, Doctor,” he said, feeling both anxious and turned on. He removed the rubber gloves and disposed of them, then lubed up his cock. He pressed the tip against Lazard’s anus and began to push slowly, groaning when he felt just how warm and tight his brother was around his cock.</p><p>“While Assistant is handling that, I’ll be checking progress on your other treatment, Patient. Open wide, please,” Rufus said as he moved to the other side of the table. He pulled a ring gag from a drawer in the table and fitted it in place, then shoved his cock into Lazard’s mouth. He began thrusting, using both hands to hold Lazard’s head in place.</p><p>Cloud watched that more than his own cock slowly being engulfed, but looked down when he bottomed out. “How hard, Doctor?”</p><p>“Oh, I suppose it doesn’t matter much. Whatever feels right to you, Assistant. I assure you, Patient can handle it,” Rufus said, then added in a confidential tone, “I think he secretly loves this part of the exam.”</p><p>Cloud almost smiled. He pulled back, feeling like his brother’s ass was gripping with the intent not to let go, then slid back in. Lazard twitched his ass back as a signal, so he started thrusting, groaning again at the feel of it, then harder when Lazard jerked back again, asking for more, at least as best as he could tell.</p><p>His grip on his brother’s hips got tighter as he got closer to orgasm and thrust harder, Lazard encouraging him by doing his best to push back to meet his strokes. He found whatever it was that made spikes and pulses of pleasure in himself during the rape—or at least, he assumed he found it due to the sounds coming from Lazard—and kept that angle as he fucked his brother.</p><p>Rufus nodded at him, then closed his eyes as orgasm hit, using short, jerky thrusts into Lazard’s mouth. Cloud lost it himself at the sight, his cock pulsing and sending a wave of pleasure through him. Lazard then groaned long and low as his own orgasm hit.</p><p>Cloud just stood there, cock still shoved deep inside his brother, as he came down from the high, then slowly pulled out. It was … a bit messy, he realized. He definitely needed to clean up. He headed to the en suite to do so quickly and came back with a towel and bowl of water so he could do the same for Lazard.</p><p>Rufus was undoing the bondage, first the gag (taking a moment to wipe away the drool), then the wrists, and finally, after Cloud was done, the ankles. Lazard stood up and stretched, then slipped the sleeve from his cock and wiped himself down with a dampened bit of the towel Cloud had brought.</p><p>“Very nice, brother,” Lazard said, giving him a kiss. “I came on your cock alone.”</p><p>“And I got to prove, once again, that you don’t have a gag reflex,” Rufus said with a self-satisfied smirk.</p><p>Lazard rolled his eyes. “Yes, brother. You made sure of it. With my full permission,” he added for Cloud’s benefit. “Now that we’re all nicely relaxed, how about we watch a movie.”</p>
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</div><p>“Yo!” Reno said. “We got a mission. Get prepped for at least a week. Meet back here once you’re ready.”</p><p>Cloud nodded and headed to his room so he could prepare a bag for smaller things and also to put a number of suits into a garment bag. Ration bars and bottled water also got added, just in case, and quite a number of ammunition clips. He would just wear his swords, though depending on what method they were using to get to wherever they were going, he might have to rack the tsurugi.</p><p>Back in the main room he found Reno, who handed over a pair of sunglasses.</p><p>“Eh?”</p><p>“We’re heading to Mt Nibel. I know you come from there, but not all of us are accustomed to being snow blind and shit, yo? If nothing else, tuck ’em into your pocket.”</p><p>“The reactor,” he said as he slipped the glasses on. Rude always wore a pair; it made him that much more intimidating.</p><p>“Yep. I was right, we’re bein’ sent to investigate. You, me, Rude, and a couple of SOLDIER types. Let’s plow.”</p><p>Rude appeared out of nowhere to join them as Reno led the way to a helipad. Reno took the controls, Rude as co-pilot, and Cloud sat on the jumper seat, snapping his tsurugi to a magnetic bar across from him. As the rotor was spooled up the two SOLDIERs arrived, and Cloud was shocked to realize one of them was General Sephiroth. The other one he didn’t recognize, but he wore the uniform of a SOLDIER 1st Class. He had spiky black hair, blue eyes, and gave off the impression of a puppy with boundless energy.</p><p>“Yo!” Reno called back. “We good to go?”</p><p>Sephiroth nodded.</p><p>“We’re gonna have to stop at Costa del Sol for a refuel,” he heard over his earpiece. “Same with Rocket Town. Cloud, see that compartment right in front of you?”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>“If you get airsick, there’s bags in there, plus a disposal bin. Keep your focus on what’s outside the windshield. Lotta folks say seeing what’s going on helps.”</p><p>“Understood,” he said, and immediately turned to face the front. It was a little awkward given that the jumpseat was in the tiny “hall” between the cockpit and the “troop” area, but he managed well enough. He <em>did</em> have problems with motion sickness, but had so far managed not to embarrass himself in front of others.</p><p>Keeping his gaze front meant not having to castigate himself if he did something silly like sneak peeks at Sephiroth. He had his brothers now, he was a Turk… There was no sense in anything other than a sincere admiration for the man’s skills. It did make him wonder how a Turk would address a SOLDIER, though, but he refrained from asking as he expected the heightened senses of a SOLDIER would hear what he was saying, even over the sound of the helicopter.</p><p>It would have been an incredibly boring and/or tense ride if not for Reno’s garrulous nature. He kept up a steady stream of talk, from stories, questions about peculiar things, things for sale down in Wall Market, and seemingly whatever came to mind. Rude nodded at all the right times, so either he was on auto-pilot or genuinely paying attention.</p><p>Costa del Sol had a refueling station on the outskirts of town at a helipad, and after a half hour of waiting on that they were off again, that time to Rocket Town for another refueling. Thankfully, taking Reno’s advice saw him getting through the journey without his stomach going wonky on him, so when they arrived on the outskirts of Nibelheim he was feeling more apprehensive than sick.</p><p>Unfortunately, the first person they ran into was Tifa, who took one look at his hair and cried, “Cloud!”</p><p>He sighed faintly and turned toward her. “Hello, Tifa,” he said quietly. She was wearing a very strange outfit consisting of a hip-hugging brown mini-skirt, a buttoned-up close-fitting grey and white vest that left her stomach uncovered, with a short sleeveless jacket over it. Added to the ensemble was a stetson, a leather belt with a silver and turquoise buckle, and cowboy boots. She looked like she was dressed for a costume party.</p><p>“You’re … not in SOLDIER?”</p><p>“No. I found something better. For me, that is,” he added, mindful of the two SOLDIERs nearby.</p><p>“Oh… Are you all here about the bombing, then?”</p><p>He nodded and looked to Reno.</p><p>“I’m the town’s guide,” Tifa informed them before Reno could say anything.</p><p>“Is that so,” Reno replied. “All the way up there, yo?”</p><p>Tifa nodded.</p><p>“We might be hiring, then. First we gotta talk around, get the word about what happened.”</p><p>“Oh, hm,” she said. “It was in the middle of the night, if that helps. I think the explosion woke all of Nibelheim up. I didn’t understand what’d happened until I got outside and could see the fire up on the mountain. Most everyone came out to see. Only a few people stayed inside. You know, too old. The next day I went partway up the mountain. The bridge is out, and it had to be that, because it was fine just a week ago when some people came through looking for a guide over the mountain.”</p><p>Tifa had clearly gotten excellent training if she could guide people over the mountain so they could get to Rocket Town, or possibly to North Corel. There was a lot on the mountain that wasn’t kind and always seemed to be hungry.</p><p>“No strangers in town before that?” Reno asked. “Nothin’ hinky goin’ on?”</p><p>Tifa shook her head after a moment. “Not that I remember. Someone else might have seen something, though. Most people just went back to bed and it wasn’t talked about much. The mayor sent out a message, to Shinra. The group I took the week before didn’t so much as look at the place and we kept on steady to the other side.”</p><p>Reno nodded. “Rude, hang with the heli, yo? Cloud, with me. Let’s go socialize.” He shot a look at the two SOLDIERs, then sauntered off.</p><p>Cloud followed. His job was to listen and learn. He was surprised, however, that the bullies he left behind did not seem to be anywhere. Had they left town for a less backwater life, or…? Thinking back to the look on Rufus’ face when they had come up, he had to wonder if his brother had made them quietly disappear as revenge for what they did to him.</p><p>Many of the townsfolk seemed startled to see him, but kept most of their focus on Reno, which suited him just fine. Cloud split his attention between listening to Reno and how he questioned people, and being alert for anyone deciding to announce they were suicidal by attacking them.</p><p>He had no idea where the two SOLDIERs had gone. They had headed off roughly in the direction of the mountain trail, but they might have been aiming for the manor Shinra had back that way. <em>Why</em> Shinra had a manor there continued to be a mystery to all residents of Nibelheim—or at least, the older folk weren’t talking if they knew.</p><p>Based on what the townsfolk were saying, Cloud imagined that any terrorists had come from the other side, or just plain slipped through town and up the mountain in the middle of the night, set explosives, then skulked off again and used remote detonation to take out the reactor. Nobody admitted to knowing anything, and Reno looked as if he believed them.</p><p>Things were uncomfortable that night, to say the least. The food was horrible (as always), and one of them always had to be on duty guarding the helicopter, though it was only a two hour shift, thankfully. He took the first watch and was tucked up in bed for the remainder of the night. The only person who didn’t take watch was Sephiroth, and he was staring moodily out the upstairs hallway window when Cloud climbed the stairs seeking a bed.</p><p>The next morning, after a shitty breakfast, Rude went off to guard their transport again, while he, Reno, and the two SOLDIERs were guided up the mountain by Tifa, still in that ridiculous outfit. Sephiroth handled just about every beast they encountered, he was that fast.</p><p>They passed through a cave with a mako fountain, which caused Sephiroth to give a short, impromptu lecture about them, and then they were at the remains of the reactor. Cloud stayed on guard after Reno used a hand signal, but he could hear him saying, “This looks an awful lot like the results of bombs, yo,” to Sephiroth before they were too far into the destruction for him to hear.</p><p>The dark-haired SOLDIER bounced over and said, “Hey! I’m Zack.”</p><p>Cloud nodded. “Cloud.”</p><p>“You’re from around here, I take it?”</p><p>“Yes.”</p><p>Zack did not seem put off by his short answers. He just smiled. “I’m from a little town, too. Gongaga. Not a lot to do there. You wanted to be a SOLDIER?”</p><p>“Originally.”</p><p>“How’re the Turks treating you?”</p><p>“Well,” he said, then added, “I enjoy my work.” Not that he had done much yet in the way of missions aside from training ones. Even this was technically a training mission, just of a different kind.</p><p>“Awesome! So, sword, huh?”</p><p>“And handgun. My preference is swords.”</p><p>Zack stopped bouncing for a second to look at him directly. “Swords plural?”</p><p>“Yes. Tsurugi and tantō.” His head snapped to the side when he heard the sound of a Nibel wolf’s feet padding on snow. He yanked the sword off his back and the tantō from its hidden sheath.</p><p>“You okay to handle that?” Zack asked.</p><p>“Yes,” he said, then moved forward to waste the beast, then the one which followed. The blades were cleaned off on their fur and then returned to their places as he moved back to his guard spot.</p><p>Tifa moved into his line of vision and said, “So you’re doing okay, Cloud?”</p><p>He had never forgotten how he got the blame for her accident, and how she had not stuck up for him, not told the truth, not that he had expected her to, the spoiled and popular daughter of the mayor. “Yes. Midgar is … interesting.”</p><p>“Um… How so?” she persisted.</p><p>“You can find just about anything you can think of there, the good and the bad.”</p><p>“Like something other than snow hare and wolf to eat?” she said wryly.</p><p>“Definitely,” he said just as a freakin’ dragon dropped out of the sky. He slid over to push Tifa back toward the reactor with his outstretched arm as Zack bounded forward and hauled that massive sword off his back. Zack made short work of the thing; didn’t even break a sweat.</p><p>“That was a nice warm up,” Zack said cheerfully.</p><p>Cloud shot him a look as he moved back into position. If he were that strong he might think so, too, but for the time being he was left with the thought that SOLDIERs might just be a little crazy. He was obviously crazy, because that kind of danger made his heart race and think fondly of doing perverted things with his brothers.</p><p>“What other good things?” Tifa asked.</p><p>He sighed imperceptibly; he was almost certain Zack could tell he’d done so. “Movies, plays, shopping in general. Anonymity.”</p><p>Tifa had the good grace to flush and fidget uncomfortably. She remembered, too, clearly.</p><p>Reno saved the day by sauntering over with a, “Yo! Got all we could from here. Let’s plow.”</p><p>“R-Right,” Tifa said, and resumed her job of guide.</p><p>After a quiet trek down the mountain Cloud took over for Rude at the helicopter, having a meal of ration bars and water. He still hadn’t seen hide nor hair of those bullies, and his theory about what Rufus might have done was gaining strength. Asking Tifa was out of the question. She was already too interested. Why, he had no idea.</p><p>Two hours of mostly boredom later Zack bounded over and said, “My shift.”</p><p>“Thank you,” he said, then headed for the inn and upstairs to the room they had. He dropped into one of the few seats and sighed.</p><p>“Not thrilled to be back, yo?”</p><p>He took off his sunglasses and rolled his eyes. “Not one bit. I hate this town like poison.” The glasses were tucked into his pocket so he could scrub his face with his hands.</p><p>“Well, you’d never know it to look,” Reno said. “So excellent job on being stoic and shit, yo. We’ll be leaving in the morning, so we can shake the dust of this place off our feet. I’ll take next watch. If you’ll take the dawn one you can try catching some extra sleep on the heli.”</p><p>He nodded.</p>
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</div><p>He did not manage to sleep on the way back, if only because the noise just wouldn’t let him. Instead he just leaned back, closed his eyes, and drifted to the sound of Reno’s never ending chatter. It was only when they got to Costa del Sol for a refuel that he realized he had not said one word to his mother while in town, and she hadn’t said anything to him.</p><p>That bridge was mostly burned anyway.</p><p>Reno did the bulk of the work on the written report, but Cloud had his own report to fill out. His was for the purpose of making it as much like a real one would be for any given mission, mostly to see if he was properly taking in the training, that and to add his own personal observations.</p><p>Once that was out of the way he was officially off duty. If Tseng wanted clarification questions would be asked in the morning, after breakfast.</p><p>Cloud retreated to his room and unpacked, then slipped into the shower so he could dally under the warm water for a time. And jack off. It was a Wednesday, so he wouldn’t be having much fun for another two days. Remembering Lazard strapped down to the exam table was all he needed to help him, and that led to wondering what it would be like if <em>he</em> was the one strapped down and taking cocks from both ends.</p><p>He came with a groan muffled by biting his free hand, then finished up his shower.</p>
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. 03: [ν]εγλ 0001</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h2 class="h2alt">03: [ν]εγλ 0001</h2><p>“You did more than just send people to question them,” he stated over dinner.</p><p>Rufus did not pretend to misunderstand. “I did.”</p><p>He nodded and dropped the subject. No more needed to be said. “A comedy tonight?”</p><p>There was a lot of groping and teasing during the movie, which just got him riled up for later activities. He was already mostly hard by the time he undressed so he could be shaved. He propped himself up on his elbows with absolutely no shame as Lazard patiently ran the razor over his skin, “accidentally” brushing his hard length more than a few times.</p><p>Rufus pulled a card from the box. “Bottom from the top. I want that one, with Cloud giving since I haven’t had that pleasure, and sucking Lazard off. Any objections?”</p><p>Cloud didn’t exactly understand what that card meant, but he was pretty ignorant. He shrugged, basically saying he was fine with it.</p><p>Lazard said, “Sure, brother. I’ll very much enjoy fucking your dirty, dirty mouth.”</p><p>Rufus laughed.</p><p>“So, um…”</p><p>“Ah, just stretch out on the bed, Cloud. I will mount you and do most of the work.”</p><p>He did so, and watched with interest as Rufus did prep work with lubrication, then lowered himself onto Cloud’s cock. He was just as warm and tight feeling as Lazard. He <em>could</em> just lay there and really let Rufus do all the work, but he could also brace his feet against the bed and jerk his hips to meet Rufus coming down, which he did.</p><p>Rufus was doing double duty as he had Lazard’s cock in his mouth. But, once they got a rhythm going it was smooth sailing. Cloud had one hand on Rufus’ hip and the other on his cock, jacking him off as they fucked, despite Rufus angling his body to get the maximum pleasure. They came all in a row, like tipping dominoes, then cleaned up and got ready for Cloud’s mako injection.</p><p>“You know, I don’t think I much cared for that position,” he said. “I feel like if I’m going to be fucking someone I should be doing a whole lot more.”</p><p>Lazard nodded as he injected the mako into the vein at Cloud’s elbow. Cloud wasn’t nervous after having gone through it once already, and it was still the lowest dose. It burned in his veins, but it was bearable. He might have been imagining it, but the burn felt the slightest bit less.</p><p>“Well, not everyone likes that position, I imagine,” Rufus said. “Though, being able to look up and see the face of the one you’re fucking…”</p><p>“You say that like it’s impossible to fuck a man in the missionary position,” Lazard said, taking a seat.</p><p>Rufus shrugged. “You can, obviously. Or did I imagine that time when I had your legs hooked over my arms? It’s just not as… It’s a notch down the scale of being the giver in a bottom from the top.”</p><p>“What I’m hearing is that we should remove that card from the box,” Lazard said. “Vote?”</p><p>“That depends,” Rufus said. “If you like the position, we keep it, just we’d have to lock in you as the giver.”</p><p>Lazard shrugged. “I don’t care that much. I say we remove it.”</p><p>Rufus looked at him, to which Cloud said, “Remove it.”</p><p>“Okay. We’ll remove it.” Rufus picked up the card, ripped it in half, and chucked it in the bin. “We might have to think up a new one to replace it.”</p><p>He snorted. “Considering I have no idea what’s already in there… And I’m sure as hell not going to suggest the baby scenario,” he said with a scowl.</p><p>“I’m not sure we remember everything that’s in there,” Lazard said, eyeing the box.</p><p>“What happens if you pull a card that no one is interested in?” he ask. “You pull a new one?”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “There are cards in there with full bondage, paddling, other weird shit. If we’re not in the mood, it gets redrawn. Other times we’re not in the mood to draw at all, and simply enjoy each other. Just making love.”</p><p>He was oddly stunned by that statement. ‘Just making love,’ he thought, ‘which implies they’re <em>in</em> love? Will they love me? Will I love them?’</p><p>Rufus’ brow went up. “You all right there, Cloud? No odd symptoms?”</p><p>“Huh? Oh, no. I feel fine. Just the burn, same as last time. I’m not hearing purple, seeing bird song, or anything else weird.”</p><p>Rufus didn’t look entirely convinced (about something, anyway), but nodded. “There’s another gala coming up. Another excuse for Daddy Shinra to blow a bunch of money on idiots.”</p><p>“And you’re expected to attend,” Lazard said.</p><p>“Yes,” Rufus said sourly. “With a date.”</p><p>Lazard frowned. “I’m sorry, brother, but it was a disaster when I tried pretending to be a woman. I’m much too tall, for one thing, and my face just isn’t…”</p><p>Rufus nodded unhappily. “You’re beautiful, brother, but in a very masculine way. I’ll just go stag again and develop selective deafness should Daddy Shinra choose to remonstrate.”</p><p>“I don’t see why he even cares. It’s not like he brings any. And the very few times he has it’s always some floozy who is so very clearly out of place, or a gold-digger hoping to get her claws on the money.”</p><p>“Maybe he thinks his son isn’t manly enough.”</p><p>Cloud snorted quietly, then shrank back slightly when both brothers looked at him intently. “Oh no. No. I hope you’re not thinking what I think you might be thinking.”</p><p>His brothers hummed thoughtfully as their eyes roamed over his face.</p><p>“He really is very pretty,” Lazard said.</p><p>“He is. Gorgeously androgynous.”</p><p>“It could potentially work.”</p><p>Rufus hummed, eyes boring into Cloud.</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“We’ll bribe you,” Rufus said. “We’ll bribe you just to see if it’d work. And then bribe you to actually do it.”</p><p>“No.”</p><p>“How about a motorcycle, Cloud?” Lazard asked.</p><p>He blinked. “And how would you top that? My own personal helicopter?”</p><p>“Your previous CO being caught in a sex scandal with videos accidentally-on-purpose sent to the media?” Rufus said.</p><p>Cloud frowned. “He was a complete asshole, but that doesn’t mean he needs to be ruined.”</p><p>“He might have been looking at you with lust in his eyes and just didn’t want to get fired, so he took his frustrations out on you,” Rufus said.</p><p>He rolled his eyes. “Now you’re just being silly.”</p><p>Lazard hummed. “Let’s see… Is there anything you’d really like to have, Cloud?”</p><p>He looked at his brother suspiciously. “If I told you that, you’d find a way to talk me into cross-dressing.”</p><p>“The chance to get one over on Daddy Shinra?” Rufus said.</p><p>He paused. “Damn it.”</p><p>Rufus smirked.</p><p>“Fine. I’ll at least let you see if I could pass for a woman, but I’m not spending even one gil of my own money on this farce. And I am <em>not</em> agreeing to be your date if I can pass.”</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Rufus took on the task of shaving him at their weekend thing. But they did not segue into sex afterward, despite Cloud’s raging erection. Instead, Lazard handed over a pair of silk panties for him to put on.</p><p>He gave his brother a skeptical look after a pointed glance at his condition. Lazard rolled his eyes and nudged Rufus, who happily enough took Cloud’s cock into his mouth and brought him to orgasm, draining him dry and licking his lips afterward like it was the best thing he’d ever tasted.</p><p>Once Cloud recovered he stepped into the panties and pulled them up, feeling like an idiot. The silk felt wonderful, though. Next he was gently pushed until he was seated and Lazard stuffed his foot into a silk stocking and unrolled it up his leg, then repeated it for the other one. A garter belt was next, clipped to the stockings.</p><p>Lazard gestured him up, then brought over the bra, also silk, and it had pockets on the inside to hold gel inserts to give him fake breasts. Cloud really didn’t like the bra, as it felt very confining. After that was a long-sleeved dress, also silk, with a modest neckline. To compensate for the lack of visible cleavage it had cut-outs on the sides, showing hints of bare skin.</p><p>His hair was slicked back with water and a dark blonde wig wrestled in place, and then he was presented with a full length mirror. Even without make-up he—“Damn it.”</p><p>Rufus smirked and dangled a pair of heels from his fingers.</p><p>Cloud scowled. “I would fucking trip and break my neck.”</p><p>“At least try them on, brother,” Rufus coaxed.</p><p>He huffed and sat back down again, not caring if it wrinkled the dress, and let Rufus put them on him. He stood back up, immediately feeling that things were very precarious indeed. “At least I don’t look like a slut in this get-up,” he muttered, then slowly tried to walk around. Heel first like a sensible person was probably not a good thing, he realized, but putting his whole foot down felt like he was clopping or doing some sort of fucked up parade march thing.</p><p>Lazard started shaking his head long before he managed a circuit of the room.</p><p>“Perhaps a kimono,” Rufus muttered. “Then geta would make sense.”</p><p>“Yes!” he said. “Because I am not liking this one bit. If I walk normally these heels are going to snap, and if I don’t I have about as much grace as a … drunk. And I still haven’t agreed to be your date, Rufus!”</p><p>“The stockings do enough to hide any leg hair,” Lazard said thoughtfully, “though it helps that your hair is so light.”</p><p>Cloud carefully clopped back over to the bed and sank down gratefully, then removed the torture instruments. The heels had to be four inches and, if he didn’t miss his guess, really would be torture if he had to wear them for several hours. He scowled at the both of them and flopped back. “You two are also forgetting that my eyes are very distinctive, I don’t sound like a girl, and I don’t know anything about high society stuff.”</p><p>“Contact lenses,” Rufus said, “I’d claim you were mute, and most people would assume you were only on my arm with the delusion of getting your hands on my money.”</p><p>He growled and sat back up, then stood. “Please get this dress off me.”</p><p>“Just the dress, brother?” Lazard asked slyly.</p><p>“You’re right,” he said. “I’ll need help with the damn bra, too. The least you could have done was find a front-close model.”</p><p>His brothers laughed and moved in to assist, freeing him from the silk confection and the <em>other</em> torture instrument. Cloud handled the remainder on his own, though he was nice enough to roll the stockings down carefully before sliding them off so that there was no damage to them.</p><p>“What if Daddy Shinra thinks I’m a whore?” he asked, having trouble maintaining eye contact. “He already has once, though that’s due more to Palmer being a moron. I’m already having issues with the hypothetical situation of being in the same room with my rapist. It’s not like I can kick him in the money maker if he makes a pass at me. I’d be executed.”</p><p>Rufus and Lazard shared a look, then sighed.</p><p>“We’re being terrible, aren’t we,” Lazard said. “Cloud, you have my heartfelt apology. We hadn’t even considered that aspect of the scenario, that you’d have reasons beyond being uncomfortable masquerading as a woman at a public function.”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “Cloud, I offer my apology for getting caught up in the idea and simply not thinking things through.”</p><p>“It’s okay, I know you didn’t mean any harm,” he said, though he was pleased they were willing to admit the wrong.</p><p>“It’s not okay,” Rufus said firmly, “though we appreciate that you’re willing to let our insensitivity go on this occasion. Also, you make for a very believable woman once dolled up, even without makeup, but someone might recognize you, such as Tseng. Tseng would never ask <em>why</em> one of his Turks is pretending to be my lady friend, but…”</p><p>“And if you were going to use a Turk, why not just use a female one?” Lazard said.</p><p>“Right. Though it would have been nicely naughty to find a dark corner so I could flip Cloud’s skirts up and suck him off.”</p><p>“Never happen,” Lazard replied. “There are far too many cameras in function spaces.”</p><p>Cloud smiled a crooked smile listening to them go back and forth.</p><p>“That sounds like a challenge, brother.”</p><p>“It can <em>sound</em> however you want. It’s not a challenge I would issue. Far too much chance of someone seeing something and trying to blackmail you and your date. I know you’d just disappear them, I’m not an idiot, but why take the risk?”</p><p>“And Cloud’s make-up would have to be exceedingly well done to have the appearance of altering his facial structure enough.”</p><p>He honestly couldn’t think of a good reason not to help Rufus out, except for being perceived as an easily-swayed doormat. Being in the same room with Daddy Shinra was most certainly an issue, but he could (attempt to) twist that in his mind to say it would be a chance to show, if only to himself, that he could move beyond it. The possibility of being recognized made him leery, but as a Turk it could be passed off as an undercover assignment. The bribe? Well, he would absolutely like a motorcycle of his own, but… Would it appear better to say he would do it without a bribe, and would Rufus then give him one anyway?</p><p>“I’ll do it on two conditions—no, three,” he said, causing his brothers to leave off their back-and-forth and look at him in shock. “One,” he said, holding up a finger. “I want the best motorcycle available and a permanent parking space, preferably with some kind of security on both. Two—” He held up a second finger. “—it’s a legit Turk mission with me counting as one of your bodyguards, even if it counts as a training mission, so Tseng is aware and can assist. Three—” He held up a third finger. “—Kimono and some kind of slippers, because I don’t think I can handle geta. Maybe one of the female Turks can do my make-up, because unless there’s something you two have yet to tell me, I question your ability in that field.”</p><p>Rufus started chuckling. “He’s out-negotiating us, brother.”</p><p>“We would need to get Cloud started on using contacts just so he can handle them in time for the event,” Lazard said. “Clear ones, obviously, except for the event itself.”</p><p>“Can it even be swung as a legit training mission without coming across as blatant favoritism or casting aspersions on the women in the Turks?” he prodded. “I imagine Tseng knows I’m your brother, even if no one else has been told.”</p><p>Rufus touched his forehead with one hand. “Cloud seems to be the voice of reason amongst us three right at the moment. Yes, if I pushed for this it would happen, but your concerns are completely valid and must be addressed. One factor is that taking an actual woman could lead to misunderstandings, but I’d like to believe the Turks are not that foolish, which means it would be simpler for me to just take a female Turk rather than spend the entire event savoring a delicious secret.”</p><p>“I could easily hide a gun and my tantō, but not the tsurugi,” he said, “and you better believe I’d be armed. No Turk should be walking into a mission unarmed. A switchblade could be hidden as a hair comb, but I don’t think I can do much with a bug sticker, nor have I tried training with knives in general, thrown or otherwise.”</p><p>Rufus looked down, then said, “All right. I will have a talk with Tseng about this and get his opinion. He knows the Turks better than I do, despite my familiarity with them. I can point out that I’d accept one of the men cross-dressing, but won’t push that option. If you do end up chosen, it would be with the proper backing. And Lazard will be present at that event, as well, so you would have both of us.”</p><p>He smiled in satisfaction. “And if I’m not chosen, I’ll pay a forfeit for having rained on your parade.”</p><p>Rufus’ eyes gleamed.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Lazard finally finished going through the report Rufus had researched and compiled and sat back with a heavy sigh. The only departments not bleeding money were his own and Tuesti’s. Palmer’s department wasn’t terrible, so he got a conditional pass. Heidegger’s department went through too much money, the excess going toward healing items, which implied that Public Security troops were <em>not</em> being properly trained. There was a steady increase in funds going toward potions, and infantrymen did not use materia. Hopefully a correctable issue.</p><p>Scarlet’s department was very wasteful. She was a talented designer, there was no question about that in his mind. But for every good thing she came up with (or her team) was one or more idiotic contraptions that made no sense, failed out of the gate, went berserk, or were so expensive to maintain that they weren’t worth making to begin with. Add to that the woman’s fascination with huge materia.</p><p>Hojo’s department was the real bleeder. That man seemed to be doing science for the sake of science, with no real thought toward possible results. Experiments escaped, were improperly discarded (hence part of the situation down in the slums and on the outskirts of Midgar), or just plain scared people. Rumors were always going around about the science department. People were frightened out of their minds by the thought of being sent there. Hojo was also furious over the destruction of the Mt Nibel reactor.</p><p>If Hojo wasn’t producing anything of value from materia fusion or his experiments, why did he get such a large chunk of the budget? Did he have blackmail on President Shinra? They really needed to figure out an “accident” that would wipe out the science department and every bit of documentation. The president might know things in general, but he likely hadn’t the brains to understand in detail. The current SOLDIERs shouldn’t need additional mako treatments beyond what it took to get to the level of a SOLDIER 1st Class.</p><p>Whatever else Hojo was adding to those injections shouldn’t be necessary, which meant Hojo had some other goal in mind. If they could wipe those two floors out… And it would mean the department’s budget would have to be completely redone. Rufus could act so very upset about the tragedy and manipulate Daddy Shinra into giving him the reins in the interim, until new scientists could be found and an internal command structure worked out.</p><p>He pulled the portable drive out of his computer and tucked it away in the secured inner pocket of his jacket, then picked up his PHS so he could send a message to Cloud.</p><p></p><blockquote>
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    <tt>Query: When in Public Security, was materia ever used on cadets or infantrymen to your knowledge, such as for healing purposes?</tt>
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</blockquote><p>He got back a reply a few minutes later and abandoned the current mission request he was working on to read it.</p><p></p><blockquote>
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    <tt>Answer: Not to my knowledge. If people were injured they were either given potions or left to heal naturally. Someone injured badly enough, well, they weren’t seen again. I don’t know if they were discharged or … what.</tt>
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</blockquote><p>Lazard was pleased that Cloud did not press further, though he would answer if asked directly, but only in person and only in a secured area. He shot back a quick reply.</p><p></p><blockquote>
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    <tt>Thank you. I am trying to clarify something in a report I’ve been given, and I knew you would tell me straight. Any thoughts on dinner?</tt>
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</blockquote><p>He went back to the request and began to work up a requisition list and who would be going. His phone twittered.</p><p></p><blockquote>
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    <tt>I still don’t know enough to make suggestions. Choose whatever, so long as we stick to the deal that you two don’t get upset if I don’t like it.</tt>
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</blockquote><p>He smiled and sent back:</p><p></p><blockquote>
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    <tt>Yes, absolutely. No fears on that score. We’ll see you at six.</tt>
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</div><p>Cloud was pleased with dinner, some kind of noodle dish. He had to assume his brothers were keeping notes on what they had offered and was accepted, so they could figure out what he may or may not appreciate. That and spy on him in the Turks cafeteria to see what he chose there for meals. Rufus probably had a private network of cameras all over the Shinra Building, spying on things. He doubted that Rufus had a camera in Cloud’s bathroom and watched him jack off (but at the same time wouldn’t be surprised if he somehow did). Rufus was the more possessive of the two.</p><p>“That was lovely,” he said as he set down his utensils and sat back. “I was thinking that tonight the both of you could fuck me, to help me ‘replace’ or supersede that memory.”</p><p>His brothers looked pleased with the suggestion and nodded.</p><p>Lazard got up to clear the table as Rufus hummed and said, “Let’s watch a movie first, give our dinner a chance to settle. Then we can move things to the bedroom.”</p><p>He had no disagreement and Lazard was for it, so they settled in to watch a somewhat overblown heroic saga involving lots of improbable materia use (and which occasioned a lot of rolling of the eyes and catcalls regarding the dippy love interest), then switched locations.</p><p>While Rufus was carefully shaving him he said, “I managed to manipulate Daddy Shinra into being quite firmly of the idea that a budget review needs to be done. Hopefully that will result in some changes to throttle certain people back.”</p><p>“Excellent news, brother. What about the gala date?”</p><p>“Tseng suggested either Freyra or Cissnei, leaning toward Freyra as she came to us from a wealthy family and should already know and be able to observe all the social niceties.”</p><p>“Guess I’m paying a forfeit, huh?” he said. He had already gone through a bout of anxiousness over that, after seeing the gleam in Rufus’ eyes and wondering what his brother would choose to do, or have him do, followed by a deep relief at not having to be in the same room as Daddy Shinra with so little distance from what had happened.</p><p>“That you are, brother,” Rufus said with satisfaction. “Lazard and I talked about it and came up with a number of ideas, none of which are particularly, hm, difficult. We wrote them all down on slips of paper and you’ll choose two.”</p><p>He bit his lip as Rufus brushed against his cock and it twitched. “All right. I did offer a forfeit, after all, and didn’t think to specify conditions.”</p><p>Rufus smirked up at him and began to wipe him down.</p><p>A little thrill ran through him, making his cock twitch again, causing him to almost roll his eyes. “And when would these be done?”</p><p>“Depends on which two slips you choose,” Lazard said. “And because you might have a reasonable objection to one you draw, you have a single option to discard and draw again.”</p><p>Rufus began to apply the lotion as Lazard removed all the extraneous items, and then his cock was in Rufus’ mouth and being given loving attention.</p><p>“Not fair, brother,” Lazard said. “You started without me.”</p><p>Rufus released him and sat back. “But he’s just so delicious.”</p><p>“Fine. You do that while I plunder Cloud’s mouth. Then we can give him a new memory.”</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Cloud stared at the slips of paper, then picked two at random. The first slip read:</p><p></p><blockquote>
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    <tt>Pierce one or both ears.</tt>
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</blockquote><p>He exhaled in relief. He could do that. He knew piercings were a very simple matter, and that it generally took longer to decide what kind of earring(s) to wear than it did to have it done. “Okay.” He then opened the second slip, which read:</p><p></p><blockquote>
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    <tt>Wear silk underwear for the entirety of a work day.</tt>
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</blockquote><p>He scowled, but it was a small enough thing to be made to do. There could be something a lot worse in the remaining slips, so he would not take the option for a discard and redraw.</p><p>Rufus deftly snatched the slips from his hand and checked them, then smirked. “Not so bad, brother.”</p><p>“Yes, not so bad.” ‘Unless,’ he thought, but would not voice, ‘the silk underwear is meant for a woman.’</p><p>“I suggest,” Lazard said, nosing in to check, “you wear the silk on a Wednesday, then come have dinner with us. We could relieve any, hrm, tension you might have. We could do the piercing now, if you want. We have a gun for that, studs, and all it’ll take after is a quick Cure.”</p><p>He nodded. “May as well.”</p><p>Shortly thereafter he had his left ear pierced with a simple silver stud. He could always go shopping later for something else, but whatever it was should be fairly simple, just so it would be harder for anyone to try to distract him with pain by managing to rip the thing out. He had no clue what he would want or would suit him, so he’d just have to wait to see what was available in the shops.</p><p>He <em>almost</em> exhaled in relief when he was handed a pair of silk boxers, but thought doing so might give his brothers certain ideas, so he refrained.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Lazard stifled a yawn. These events were always so damn boring. There was so much posturing going on. Rufus was in his public persona, charming and vague and sidestepping anything he did not wish to respond to by checking to be sure his date was well.</p><p>Sephiroth had been roped into the gala and stood at one of the windows, a glass of wine in hand. He was expressionless, but Lazard would bet he was bored out of his mind and annoyed at having to be there.</p><p>Various Turks in plain clothes ghosted around the ballroom, the rest on standby in their suits, just in case things got weird. Cloud was not one of them, being so new still, which was better than Rufus needing to ask Tseng to specifically keep him off duty.</p><p>The dinner portion of the evening had featured exquisitely-prepared delicacies (which had to have cost an absolute fortune) and was exceptionally boring. It was all the usual meaningless chatter, boasting, and sucking up.</p><p>Women tried to catch Rufus’ eye, gravely insulting his date in the process (or would have if she had been there as an <em>actual</em> date and love interest), tried to catch Sephiroth’s eye (he was stone-faced and silent during any attempts), and even tried to flirt with Daddy Shinra (because none of them were bright enough to realize they would be fucked with and thrown away like trash).</p><p>Things suddenly became very exciting when one of the windows shattered and Professor Hojo dropped, a large hole through his forehead and his brains sprayed over the gleaming marble floor. Women screamed and scattered, Daddy Shinra was hustled back by Scarlet and Heidegger, and Rufus vanished along with his “date”, as did two of the totally-not-a-Turk watchers. Palmer wedged himself under a table, leaving a streak of urine on the floor.</p><p>Sephiroth… Sephiroth cracked the barest of smiles before going stone-faced again, though even he got out of the line of sight through the floor-to-ceiling windows.</p><p>For his part, Lazard disappeared toward his brother, wondering who the fuck had just assassinated Hojo. A look at Rufus showed he was just as bewildered, but he whipped out his PHS and activated the controls for the window shutters, hiding the view of the outside world. People started streaming out once they realized they could not be sniped, which gave him and Rufus all the excuse they needed to duck through one of the high level-only doors so they could head to Rufus’ office.</p><p>Just before the door closed he could see Sephiroth haul the corpse off the floor.</p><p>Their Turk accompaniment escorted them to safety, and once inside he and Rufus went straight for the liquor cabinet to pour drinks.</p><p>“Sephiroth cracked a smile, but I don’t think he had anything to do with it,” he said, taking a sip of green Chartreuse. “He was also hauling up the corpse as we left. Hopefully, if Hojo had anything of importance on him, Sephiroth won’t let the wrong sort get near it.”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “We’ll still want to arrange a purge on that department, I think. There are likely far too many people in there who agreed with the man and would attempt to take up his work.”</p><p>“Maybe we could manipulate Daddy Shinra into submitting a mission request, then having Sephiroth and the top SOLDIERs enter the department and purge it? People, experiments, documents… Everything.” He had another sip of his Chartreuse and scrubbed at his face with his free hand.</p><p>“We’d have to retain pure mako,” Rufus pointed out. “But we can continue to get that from the supply generated in the Sector Zero reactor. You go down there often enough to check on injured SOLDIERs. Shouldn’t be any different. Given how many we seem to have, even after Genesis ran off with a bunch of them, we might be able to cut back on recruiting some. Monster extermination and Genesis copies shouldn’t require us to replenish numbers, and there’s precious little on the planet that Shinra Company doesn’t already oversee.”</p><p>“I’ll run the numbers, keep track of exactly what kind of manpower is actually required,” he said. “If Avalanche continues to blow reactors, though, we’ll need new sources of power, preferably not coal. Corel is a stinking mess even after their mining operations were shut down.”</p><p>“Maybe Tuesti has some ideas,” Rufus said. “He’s urban development and planning. I wouldn’t trust the current science department, and Scarlet is all about bigger and better weapons. Palmer is a maybe, but he’s more transportation. I think I’ll send Tuesti a message to that effect. It can’t hurt to see what he knows.”</p><p>“And coming from the Vice President…”</p><p>“I’m debating letting Cloud know we’re all right. He might have heard the department get loud and already be aware we’re fine, but…”</p><p>He nodded. “Send him a message, then, just in case.”</p><p>Rufus got out his PHS and shot off a message, then sipped his drink. “The shooting was the most interesting thing about that gala. But who? We don’t have anyone who can snipe in SOLDIER, and I rather doubt a sniper in Public Security could have positioned themself to manage a perfect, straight-on hit like that. The distance alone is unfavorable, never mind the angle. There are no buildings tall enough to be able to see in through the windows that high up.”</p><p>“Someone in flight armor?” he said, not believing it for a second. “There was no helicopter out there, it would have been noticed.”</p><p>Rufus shook his head. “I don’t think those things can get that high up without first being that high up. And their hands are holding those rotors, essentially. They have no way to attack except with the blades.” His phone twittered, so he looked down to check it. “Cloud thanks us for letting him know. He did hear the commotion and left his room to check, and was informed along with everyone else that the only injury and/or fatality was Hojo.”</p><p>“Good. Or rather, it’s good that he knows we’re all right. I imagine he’ll request lunch tomorrow, assuming he’s not caught up in something with the Turks.”</p><p>“Can we trust SOLDIER to do a mission as requested?” he asked. “I don’t know if they would attempt to read through any of the documentation there.”</p><p>Lazard frowned. “Perhaps amend the proposed mission to have them collect it all, drives as well, and have it delivered to you? Even then they might get distracted. None of them were terrorized by the man as best I can tell. If anyone that would have been Sephiroth, but he might simply be pleased enough to follow mission parameters. I think we can afford to take the risk. SOLDIERs in general don’t like Hojo, based on rumors regarding his activities, but I don’t think any of them have any personal grudges to bear. Again, Sephiroth aside.”</p><p>“All right. I will manipulate Daddy Shinra to send in the request. You can handle it from there. I will also send a message to Tuesti regarding alternative power sources, citing the inefficiency of the mako reactors. As Vice President, it behooves me to do so, especially if the president is doing fuck-all aside from living the high life normally and seems to be content with the status quo.”</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Cloud nearly had a heart attack when he ducked out of his room to find out what the commotion was about and heard that someone had been assassinated at the gala. His eyes went straight to Tseng, who shook his head slightly, which saw him exhaling slowly. Tseng pressed his fingers to his earpiece and listened for a minute, then raised his hand.</p><p>He got instant silence.</p><p>“Professor Hojo was assassinated at the gala. He was the only casualty. No other employees nor any guests were injured, never mind killed. Death was by means of a sniper shot, by an unknown assailant, through the windows.”</p><p>“How the hell could someone snipe that high up, yo?” Reno said. “That don’t compute, boss.”</p><p>Tseng shrugged elegantly. “Unknown at this time. Based on what was seen of the entry, the impact, and the spray, the bullet was nearly horizontal, which meant the shooter was in what seems like an impossible position. There are no buildings in Midgar high enough for a shooter to perch on. None are close enough. No one on site saw a helicopter. We’re in the dark on this right now. I want people on duty to go through everything we know to see if we can uncover some kind of explanation, no matter how outlandish it might seem.”</p><p>People scattered to their desks, the archives, and Tseng drifted over to Cloud to murmur, “Unfortunately, you are not yet trained enough to know what to look for, and you’re also off-duty. They are fine, you don’t need to worry. They were escorted out with a Turk guard.”</p><p>He nodded. “Thank you. I’m just going to go … study something. Good night, sir.”</p><p>Once Tseng nodded he retreated to his room and sat down heavily, then jumped slightly when his PHS twittered. It was Rufus letting him know that he and Lazard were all right and in Rufus’ suite. He sent up a silent prayer in thanks before shooting back a quick reply, then set the phone down. Right about then he would have welcomed a half glass of wine, just to help him relax. Instead he fetched out one of the training manuals and started to read.</p><p>At least the top crazy of the science department was dead.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Lazard hummed to himself as he went over the mission request that came in from President Shinra. Rufus had come through (as expected) and secured for him the authority to send SOLDIER in to rip the two floors of the science department to shreds with an eye toward rebuilding it entirely. (Preferably with sane people.) There was nothing in the way of requisitions he needed to make, as all SOLDIER carried a variety of materia on them: fire, lightning, healing.</p><p>He picked up his PHS and sent a request for General Sephiroth to meet him in the briefing room, printed off a copy of the mission details, and left his office for 49F. Sephiroth was already there, stone-faced as usual.</p><p>“Thank you for coming, general,” he opened with as he took a seat and set down the mission request. “This is a highly sensitive mission involving the science department on 67F and 68F, by request of President Shinra. You are to purge that department, taking as many SOLDIERs as you deem necessary. All workers are to be incarcerated for the Turks to interrogate. All experiments are to be destroyed, as well as any experimental material. Weapons and materia use is approved, so long as the building’s structural integrity is maintained.</p><p>“Any and all documentation is to be gathered up to be delivered to Vice President Shinra. That includes paper files and data drives. Depending on what the vice president finds about what has been going on up there, there may be further missions to purge any external laboratories and research facilities. Questions?”</p><p>“What of any machinery?”</p><p>“Use your best judgment, general. If the destruction of an experiment requires its … housing … to be destroyed, do so. If there is anything on those two floors you deem a significant danger, destroy it. That includes any robots, as they have been known to go berserk on occasion, and any turrets, as you may be unable to disable them. I understand there is materia fusion equipment somewhere in there and imagine it is not likely a danger. If nothing else, anything you need to destroy can be melted down and recycled into something else.” He pushed the request over so that Sephiroth could read it over.</p><p>Eventually the man nodded and said, “I will assemble a team now, director.”</p><p>He inclined his head, rose, and wandered back to his office, where he shot a message to Rufus that the mission was a go.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Cloud rolled into Rufus’ office at lunch time (because honestly, he thought Rufus was more at risk from assassins than Lazard) more so he could see for himself that his brother was all right than for a meal. Rufus gave him a warm smile and stood up. “Let’s eat. I was thinking sandwiches.”</p><p>He nodded, not fussed about what. Most food he wasn’t fussed about, willing to try most anything once, if only because it was new and different. Not wolf, wolf, and more wolf. Only once they were in Rufus’ kitchen did he say, “What happened?”</p><p>Rufus popped bread into the toaster. “Everything was going normally. Out of nowhere one of the windows shattered and Hojo hit the floor. He had a hole in his forehead, dead center from what I could see. I ducked back into cover, Lazard joined me, and I activated the shutters. It was that abrupt. I didn’t hear any additional shots hitting the shutters, so…”</p><p>“Huh,” he said as he took a seat. “So someone did us all the favor of taking out a complete whacko. And hopefully won’t return to take out non-whackos. And of course, Tseng said no one has any clue who could have done it or even how, aside from being a sniper.”</p><p>“It’s a mystery,” Rufus said as he pulled bread out of the toaster and set it in a rack to cool a bit, then headed for the refrigerator. “SOLDIER should be shortly purging the science department. The workers there will be sent to interrogation with the Turks.”</p><p>“So either I’m not involved, or I get to listen in to learn from it.”</p><p>“Very likely. It’s an opportunity that can’t be predicted, so I imagine Tseng will take advantage of it and have you audit them. To backtrack a little, how do you feel after having been sent to Nibelheim?”</p><p>He blinked, not expecting that as a question. “Weird, and at the same time, better. People were startled to see me, but they left me alone. I didn’t even get any of those looks I used to get. Maybe it was just that I was officially there as part of Shinra. Not a SOLDIER, but clearly not a failure, either. I was annoyed that Tifa started asking questions, like she gave a damn.”</p><p>“Tifa, the guide girl,” Rufus said, assembling the sandwiches.</p><p>“Yeah. Mayor’s daughter, popular. Which, whatever. But there was an incident when we were younger, we both ended up falling off a bridge and she was badly injured.”</p><p>“And you were blamed, right?”</p><p>“Of course. Tifa couldn’t possibly have been at fault. The village scapegoat, on the other hand… But that isn’t what upset me. It was that she knew the truth—it’s not like it messed up her memory—and she said nothing. She, uh, let me take the fall.”</p><p>Rufus chuckled and turned around with two plates, which he ferried to the table, then went back for drinks.</p><p>“Then when she started acting interested I was just … confused.”</p><p>“Perhaps she was simply curious about a former resident who appeared to have done well for himself. Or maybe she felt guilty.”</p><p>“She certainly seemed to get something out of me saying a good thing about Midgar is anonymity, so maybe. I don’t hate her or anything, I just don’t feel like getting over that omission,” he said, then picked up his sandwich so he could eat.</p><p>Rufus nodded and changed the subject. “If nothing else, me gaining all the data from the science department gives me a legitimate excuse to push for investigations into other departments. I don’t expect any of it to be palatable. Of course, that assumes none of the SOLDIERs decide to get curious and do some reading, get angry, and assassinate Daddy Shinra. Being vice president is a much safer position for me, and I have nearly the full power of the president right where I am.”</p><p>“Springboarding off my unfortunate encounter with the man.”</p><p>“Yes. I am an opportunist,” Rufus said with a smirk. “It was pure chance I saw Palmer essentially kidnap you. I wasn’t about to waste the potential it presented us with. And I certainly wasn’t going to waste a chance with you.”</p><p>“What exactly did you do, then?” he asked. “I mean, there was a gap between the … incident … and when you summoned me. I honestly thought I was going to my execution or something, by the way,” he said with a scowl.</p><p>Rufus gave him an apologetic look before saying, “Lazard tailed you when you headed out into Midgar. He was able to obtain a sample of your hair, which we used for the genetic testing. Once we were certain you were our brother, we planned out that meeting.”</p><p>“And if I hadn’t been?”</p><p>“I still would have digitally manipulated the footage so that I could use it for blackmail purposes. You would still have been an entirely innocent party to the results of Palmer’s mistake, and you should not have suffered further for it. We simply would not have brought you in to talk to us. Manipulate Daddy Shinra and Palmer to not recognize you? Yes, I would still have done that. Had I been feeling especially apathetic at the time, Lazard would have pointed out all the reasons why I should. That’s one thing about our relationship. We act as checks and balances on each other. Even you’ve started to do that, which is good. A third trustworthy perspective is a good thing.”</p><p>And he believed him. Aside from his initial meeting with Rufus and Lazard, where Rufus had intentionally provoked him with dire words to get him to start talking, they had yet to steer him wrong or lie to him that he knew of. He didn’t know everything, but he also didn’t have clearance, and he couldn’t expect either of them to share everything simply because they were brothers.</p><p>“Well, I would certainly be poorer for not knowing you two,” he said. “For having people I can trust. A family.”</p><p>Rufus reached across the table to give his hand a squeeze, then had some of his sandwich.</p><p>Rufus was right as it turned out. When he got back to the Turks floor he was hauled off to watch interrogations on a large monitor so he could hopefully learn something from it. Some of the Turks had been trained to transcribe on the fly, so they were monitoring, as well, just to speed up the reporting process, he assumed.</p><p>Some of the workers, the peons, were terrified and telling anything they knew, but they were just peons doing what they’d been told, either because they were too apathetic to care or because they were trying desperately not to become one of those inhumane experiments. They were now terrified they’d be disappeared for their involvement.</p><p>The scientists, however, were as vile a bunch as Cloud had ever heard speak. They were proud of what they’d been doing up there. Cissnei drifted by at one point, saw his face, and handed over anti-nausea medication. He gave her a faint thanks, knocked it back with some water, and kept watching and taking notes on techniques. He wasn’t sure he could ever act well enough (or be hard enough) to do similar interrogations, but time would tell.</p><p>Hojo’s team of scientists thought nothing of rounding people up and subjecting them to every indignity, including the loss of their humanity. It was a wonder there were any people <em>left</em> below the plate. People had been injected with all sorts of nasty shit, mutated into monsters, been subjected to gene splicing, and every other thing Hojo could think of. And these people happily went along with it, like it was their Gaia-given right to do so.</p><p>Cloud wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if Rufus had the lot of them executed for crimes against humanity, though it might be couched as darkening Shinra’s reputation to unacceptable levels. Or something. Apparently, he was starting to pick up how to speak “politically”.</p><p>By the time he got to his room that late that evening he was wiped out and suffering a nasty headache.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>When Friday evening rolled around Rufus was thrilled to leave off reading through transcripts of interrogations. He had decided to tackle those first, rather than wading through the mountain of data from the science department. The issue of the shooter had been set on the back burner as Tseng was rotating interrogators so all of them kept a hand in and none of them burned out. He wondered how Cloud was handling monitoring, but would be seeing him soon.</p><p>He absolutely was not in the mood to cook, so he was thankful that after giving him a kiss, Lazard started dinner preparation. Steak with baked potatoes, apparently. Rufus got poured wine for both of them and slumped into a chair. “I don’t regret doing it, but this is a literal headache to deal with.”</p><p>“And it’s not like you can ask for help, not unless you take Tseng away from his people.”</p><p>“Right. Since I’ve been up to my ears in transcripts… Any whispers about the shooter?”</p><p>“Not one. The only thing that’s come to mind is an experiment of Hojo’s that was able to get back at him. I don’t think we can afford to comb each and every record looking for a gun specialist who <em>might</em> have disappeared under suspicious circumstances.”</p><p>“But there might be a record of something like that in the data I have waiting. Or records to lead me to records that might. If it is a pissed off experimental subject.” He sighed and sipped his wine. “Cloud’s been monitoring interrogations all week. I don’t expect him to be very lively when he gets here.”</p><p>“Perhaps we should consider spending time in the VR room this weekend,” Lazard said, glancing over his shoulder. “Some good old fashioned stress relief. Cloud’s been started on materia, so perhaps he could get just as much out of it by setting things on fire. That always makes me feel better, imagining those creatures are various execs.”</p><p>He let out a tired chuckle of amusement, then pinched the bridge of his nose. “Well I definitely need relaxation time to get rid of this blasted headache. Hopefully a good meal and some quiet time before anything else will suffice. And yes, quiet time includes destroying monsters.”</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>Cloud entered the kitchen right as Lazard was pulling food from the oven. He didn’t get but halfway across before Rufus pulled him into a kiss. He returned it with pleasure, then let himself be guided to a seat. “What a shitty week. Cissnei just handed over an entire packet of anti-nausea medicine after the third time seeing my face. And the headaches…”</p><p>“You’re in good company, brother,” Rufus said. “The headaches, that is.”</p><p>Lazard brought a tray over to the table and placed it at the center, then looked inquiringly at Cloud.</p><p>“A half glass of wine, please, and water.”</p><p>Lazard nodded and was back shortly. “How do you feel about some VR time instead of a movie, Cloud?”</p><p>“Yes. Please. I’d really like to kill something, or a lot of somethings. I honestly considered the idea of most of the scientists I had to listen to, but I couldn’t decide if I’d feel guilty about it.” He had a sip of wine, then picked up his knife to split the potato open so he could salt and pepper it, toss in far too much butter, and add sour cream. More butter went onto his steak to melt, because why not, plus some salt, and he began to eat.</p><p>“I try to weigh a person against their actions,” Rufus said. “If let go, would they do it again? Do I believe they’re too dangerous to let live? If left alive, can they be firmly directed and not waver off course? Prison might be a viable option for some, as the loss of freedom is felt keenly, but for others?” He shrugged. “And of course, anyone who comes at me with the intent to kill dies.”</p><p>“Or when someone harms one of your own,” he said.</p><p>“That, too.” Rufus looked at him directly. “I haven’t killed Daddy Shinra. He’s still useful. But if you really want him dead, it’ll happen.”</p><p>He ate more of his meal while he considered that. He didn’t despise the man for that encounter, because had he really been a slum whore it would have been normal enough. He could despise the bullies in Nibelheim, because they knew exactly what they were doing, and probably only didn’t rape him because his potential resulting injuries from all of them having turns would have been too worrying to them. He might be giving them too much credit, though.</p><p>He had trouble hating Daddy Shinra for what happened with his mother, because while he could guess or speculate, he had no concrete evidence. And, well, his mother had been an adult who made a mistake, a costly one. There was every likelihood that nothing illegal had happened, and if she had been threatened by the man, Cloud would probably never find out. He would have to ask, and she would need to answer.</p><p>So what could he hate him for? The man had built an empire and rose to effectively become a dictator. He staffed a good portion of his company with people from inept to evil, and condoned the evil. That alone was a good reason. But Rufus had hamstrung the man and was manipulating him into making changes, forcing him to give up a lot of things.</p><p>“If he ever balks at something you think is necessary, then we three discuss it,” he said. “If we three decide he is no longer useful, then yes, I’d say kill him. Right now it seems like he can authorize a lot of good at our direction, and it keeps you out of the direct spotlight.”</p><p>“Agreed,” Lazard said.</p><p>Rufus nodded. “Agreed.”</p><p>Maybe he could be ruthless after all.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>“You want to do what?” he said, watching as Lazard shaved him after their showers. He had worked up a good sweat in the VR room.</p><p>“Have us take turns with dessert,” Lazard said. “For example, the first person drizzles chocolate all over the second and then licks it off with the goal of getting him to orgasm. Or honey. Or pureed berries. And then the second gets dessert with the third, and the third gets dessert with the first.”</p><p>“Huh,” he said as Lazard began wiping him down. “Where does stuff like that even come from?”</p><p>“Mideel, mostly,” Rufus said.</p><p>“All right. I’m game.”</p><p>Rufus disappeared and was back shortly with several squeeze bottles. Cloud eyed them skeptically. They had to have planned this out before he arrived for dinner. Surely no one kept squeeze bottles of various substances on the off chance they’d be used during sex. Right?</p><p>Rufus produced three slips of paper as Lazard lotioned Cloud up, and they each took one. Lazard got one, Cloud two, and Rufus three. Cloud found himself pushed back to lie flat on the bed, legs still dangling over the edge. Lazard grabbed one of the bottles at random and began to squeeze out lines on his chest and stomach.</p><p>The bottle was set aside so Lazard could begin licking the substance off; it was golden, so it was honey. Lazard’s tongue made long strokes over his skin, smearing the honey around before being licked away, and Cloud realized his nipples were rather sensitive, especially when his brother sucked or bit them gently. It made his cock twitch and harden, made him want to be sucked off badly.</p><p>Lazard moved lower, feasting on his stomach. It wasn’t quite ticklish, but it did make him squirm a little, especially as his brother kept brushing against his straining cock. More was squeezed onto him, on his cock and around it, and Lazard tortured him by laving the skin to either side, ignoring his cock except as incidental touches.</p><p>And finally, finally Lazard took him into his mouth and started to work his cock, doing that thing with his tongue that made Cloud jerk his hips up into that wet warmth, almost desperate for more. Lazard fondled his balls and even dipped down to suck them into his mouth and roll them around, but quickly enough returned to his cock so he could work him over, wrest an explosive orgasm from him, and drain him dry.</p><p>He lay there for a bit afterward, relaxed and spent, then sat up and eyed Rufus. The interrogations most likely continued in his absence, but that was fine. A break was needed, and he had better things to do for the moment, like make his brother writhe and beg.</p><p></p><div>
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</div><p>They spent a fair amount of time in the VR room, fighting various monsters. Anything Cloud couldn’t quite handle his brothers did, but they always gave him plenty of opportunity to work things out, techniques, strategies, so that he could continue to improve. Materia use was coming to him fairly easily, though he would not be the least bit surprised if the mako injections were helping, both to increase his attunement and his reserves.</p><p>“Tseng mentioned—well, before the purge—that I’d be set up with VR sessions soon to learn how to fly a helicopter,” he said during one of their short breaks.</p><p>Rufus nodded. “I imagine you would also be trained on the guns. They are a fantastic backup weapon.”</p><p>“Not very accurate I expect,” he said, then drank down a goodly amount of water to compensate for all the sweating he was doing.</p><p>Rufus shook his head. “But effective in making enemies dance or dive for cover. Or blowing said cover up with missiles. On a side note, Tuesti mentioned the people of Cosmo Canyon as a likely source of ideas for alternative power sources. I was considering the idea of sending to Turks out to investigate, possibly lure someone in from there to head the science department.”</p><p>“You say lure, brother,” Lazard said. “I imagine given their general stance over there, that they would be wary of any overtures.”</p><p>“Indeed. Tseng will know best who to send. I expect Cissnei to be one of them. Possibly Emma. Reno does excellent work, but he comes across as being rather disrespectful. Cloud might be an option, both as training and because he looks so harmless.”</p><p>Cloud scowled, but nodded. Even Reno was taller than him, by a good inch, but Cloud hoped he would gain more height. He doubted he would ever match either of his brothers, who both stood a good four inches taller. Cloud’s features had an innocence to them, so he could understand why he might be sent.</p><p>He wasn’t exactly thrilled that he looked so innocent (only admitted to once he had sat down in front of a mirror and honestly examined his own face), but it could come in very handy. Turk training made him aware of many things, such as how to manipulate people, appearance and body language being major factors in that. To not take advantage of it would be foolish.</p><p>They started in with combat again, again letting Cloud get as much as he could out of it before he had to be rescued. It was both endearing and annoying.</p><p>“You know, way back, before I became director,” Lazard said, “they used to do the mako treatments in cylindrical containers, clear ones. The subjects would be given a breathing apparatus and dunked in a mako solution for hours. They had evidence that full skin exposure allowed for the mako to be absorbed.”</p><p>“So why did they change?” he asked. “Aside from the very idea being scary.”</p><p>“It could more easily cause sickness as a reaction and there was danger of choking to death or suffocating if the subject vomited. That led to an IV with anti-nausea medication. But the psychological effects of being in those tubes meant it took a lot longer for subjects to recover, and Shinra apparently did not want their SOLDIERs out of commission for so long. Then they added sedatives to the IV.”</p><p>He shuddered and took on another construct, a gagihandi. “Exposed to all of them, unconscious, with who knows what might be going through that IV? No thanks.”</p><p>Lazard nodded. “They also tried it anally.”</p><p>“What!?” He risked a quick look at his brother to see a serious expression.</p><p>“Yes. It’s well known to the science department that one way to administer anything was anally. The tissues there readily absorb medications, and it comes with the benefit of not inducing nausea. SOLDIERs threatened to riot once they found out what was happening to them while unconscious. Then they tried suppositories, but the SOLDIERs still threatened to riot. By the time I became director they were doing injections with a less concentrated solution. It still burns and it takes longer, but overall it’s a much more pleasant experience.”</p><p>“Huh. Yeah, I imagine so. The idea of some random Hojo flunky shoving a nozzle up my ass and pumping in mako seems like even more of a violation.”</p><p>“And if it was one of us?” Rufus asked slyly.</p><p>“I wouldn’t feel violated, but I also don’t have a clue about long term effects on my, um…”</p><p>“Rectum and large intestine,” Lazard said helpfully.</p><p>“Yeah, that.”</p><p>“From the records I was able to uncover?” Lazard said. “Nothing. I have trouble believing reports of negative side effects would have been destroyed, and I’ve seen no reports in the archives about it. Still, unless we wanted to be kinky while taking mako treatments, injections work just fine.”</p><p>He took on a second gigihandi and said, “We’ve done this twice now with no nastiness. Perhaps the next one can be normal? Next weekend, perhaps.”</p><p>His brothers verbally agreed, mostly, he thought, because he had not taken his eyes off his prey.</p><p>He came away from his weekend off feeling refreshed, pleasantly sore from all the time in the VR room, and well fucked. A look at his schedule on arriving at his room showed another full week of monitoring interrogations and taking notes.</p><p>Cissnei had been kind enough to explain where he could get more of that anti-nausea medication, and pointed out that it helped for motion sickness. The dispensary was also willing to hand out painkillers, though nothing of exceptional strength. Something about preventing addiction.</p><p>He didn’t understand that in the least, but then they never had such niceties in Nibelheim beyond certain hardy herbs made into tisanes, and he had never had any unless he collected the herbs personally and made it himself. His mother had provided for them by collecting herbs and shipping them off to Midgar. There was never any for personal use from her efforts.</p><p>They weren’t bad, though they only took the edge off. It had made him seek out less medicinal teas, and he found black tea to be quite nice so long as he added sugar and milk or cream. Tea had the unfortunate side effect of making his bladder more active, which reminded him of the incident, but he wasn’t about to give the stuff up. Too much in the way of fizzy drinks upset his stomach and gave him the runs, so he avoided them, and coffee just plain upset his stomach.</p><p>He <em>would</em> be happy to go on a mission to Cosmo Canyon, if only to see more of the world. Well, and if his brothers thought the mako reactors could be replaced with something better, more efficient, something that didn’t stink up the city… It didn’t smell anything like the air in Nibelheim, and that place had the scent of natural mako in the air. From the fountains, he assumed. It had a crisp, lively smell to it, like growing things, and he thought it was the only reason herbs and vegetables thrived under such cold conditions.</p><p>He had never actually seen a mako fountain, not having dared to venture <em>too</em> far from the town, but others had spoken of them with wonder. Cosmo Canyon was said to be warm, but barren in the immediate area, mostly rock, which made him wonder where they obtained their food. The map he had seen showed forests atop some of the plateaus, so perhaps there.</p><p>He scrubbed at his face and stripped down, used the toilet and brushed his teeth, then slid into bed, not looking forward to the coming work week.</p>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. 04: [ν]εγλ 0002</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Ebook copies: [<a href="http://ff.grazhir.com/att/A%20Treacherous%20Thing%20-%20Shivani.azw3">.azw3</a>] [<a href="http://ff.grazhir.com/att/A%20Treacherous%20Thing%20-%20Shivani.epub">.epub</a>] [<a href="http://ff.grazhir.com/att/A%20Treacherous%20Thing%20-%20Shivani.mobi">.mobi</a>]</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <h2 class="h2alt">04: [ν]εγλ 0002</h2><p>Tseng had called him in along with Cissnei (shuriken primary) and Emma (gun primary, and who had joined on some of his training missions to give him pointers) and said, “A mission request has come in that is perfect for the Turks. It is to Cosmo Canyon and you will be accompanied by the director of urban development, Reeve Tuesti. You three have been chosen as you are the most innocent-looking of the Turks, the least obvious as a threat.”</p><p>“Which simply makes us more dangerous, sir,” Emma said. She had chin-length bright blonde hair, blue eyes, and a no-nonsense attitude. Unless you were a fellow Turk and out of the public eye, anyway. Then she was less rigid and more obviously friendly. Cloud got the feeling she sort of saw him as a younger brother type, someone to look out for.</p><p>Cissnei gave off the same feeling, so he felt comfortable around her.</p><p>“The goal is to obtain cooperation from Cosmo Canyon in alternative power sources. They spend a lot of time over there studying the planet, do not have a mako reactor, and somehow manage just fine when it comes to energy. Two others will be going as pilots and to guard the transport. I want you to pack for a week. Mission start is 0800 tomorrow morning. Questions?”</p><p>Cloud had none, because he’d been pre-warned.</p><p>“Cooperation, so no violence, sir?” Cissnei said more than asked.</p><p>“Correct. It’s entirely possible that once they understand we’re looking for honest alternatives, they’ll assist without much if any trouble. If someone with a deep understanding of alternatives could be brought back, much the better. I’m sure the science department could use some sane minds after recent events.”</p><p>Cloud thought that was the closest he’d seen Tseng be to annoyed or sarcastic.</p><p>“We can always try a second time, later. If we use violence now, that’s extremely unlikely to happen, and we would need to then steal the information,” Tseng said. “If things seem to be going poorly and you’re able to get photographs of any relevant information, do so, so long as you can avoid detection by the locals. Preference is for cooperation on their part, and possibly a scientist for Shinra to lead the project.”</p><p>There was a short silence before Tseng said, “0800, helipad ten. Dismissed.”</p><p>Cissnei whipped a piece of paper out of her pocket as Tseng retreated and handed it over to Cloud with a smile, then gave him a pat on the shoulder and left. It was a packing list. Maybe Emma and Cissnei were feeling more motherly than sisterly? His mouth twitched into a near smile, then he nodded to Emma and headed for his room. The first thing he did there was shoot off a message to Lazard and Rufus.</p>
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    <tt>Being sent to Cosmo Canyon, 0800 tomorrow. Not sure how long it’ll take.</tt>
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</blockquote><p>He added suits to his garment bag and folded it, latched it, and hung it on the back of his door, then grabbed his supplies bag. He was halfway through adding what he would need (they were taught to always assume they could not obtain normal meals on a mission, amongst other things, so ration bars were a given, along with bottled water) when his phone twittered.</p>
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    <tt>Join us for dinner? Six?</tt>
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    <tt>Yes. But you can’t keep me too late. Tseng would probably have my ass</tt>
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</blockquote><p>He backspaced that. No giving his brothers ammunition.</p>
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    <tt>Yes. But you can’t keep me too late. I’ll be there at six.</tt>
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</blockquote><p>Boxer briefs, socks, and various other things were added to his bag, which was zipped and placed next to the door. Because of when they had been called in for the briefing, he had extra time that day to himself. The question was what to do with it.</p><p>He settled for watching a show on cooking. It would broaden his knowledge, even if he didn’t necessarily have a clue what any of it would taste like. Anything interesting he could ask his brothers about, right?</p>
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</div><p>Lazard looked up with a smile when their youngest brother strolled into the kitchen and flopped into a seat. He somehow made it look graceful. “Fun day, huh?”</p><p>Rufus swooped in with a deep kiss for their brother, then took a seat as Lazard slid a tray onto the table.</p><p>“I spent my free time watching cooking shows,” Cloud said as he eagerly picked up his utensils. “And I made notes on stuff that looked interesting. Basically, it was a good day. You two?” he asked, then dove into his meal.</p><p>Lazard smirked in amusement. It was <em>always</em> amusing to see just how much Cloud enjoyed good food after coming from a backwater with precious few options (wolf? really?) and then “graduating” to being fed the “nutritious” slop meant for cadets and trainees. “My day went pleasantly.”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “Well, as pleasant as mine could be considering I’m still wading through those transcripts.”</p><p>Cloud shot him a commiserating look before returning to his meal.</p><p>“Since you’ll be going away for several days, at the least, would you like an early shave, brother?”</p><p>Cloud hummed agreeably.</p><p>“By the way, I received news that the Corel reactor went missing,” Rufus said casually.</p><p>He blinked, his fork halfway to his mouth. Cloud was in a similar position of shock, or possibly confusion. “Missing?”</p><p>“Yes. The current theory is that someone somehow backfired an Exit Materia so weirdly that it vanished the entire reactor. Sounds crazy to me, but…”</p><p>Lazard got his fork to complete the journey to his mouth, took in the food, and chewed thoughtfully. “I find that hard to believe.”</p><p>“Is there any possibility it’s connected to the shooter?” Cloud asked. “I mean, whoever did that did the impossible, so why not the vanishing of a reactor? Maybe they had some weird compound that could dissolve the thing? Overnight?”</p><p>“That almost sounds more plausible,” Rufus commented. “It also makes our intent to find alternative power sources more of an issue. Can you imagine what would happen if the reactors here just vanished? There would be riots, people would die in droves. It wouldn’t be quite as bad under the plate, but up here?” He shook his head.</p><p>“We’d probably have to escape by helicopter,” Lazard said. “Costa del Sol sounds nice. You have that villa there. Come to think of it, they don’t have a mako reactor, either.”</p><p>Rufus snorted. “People there are too busy getting drunk and hooking up with random strangers to worry about electric lights and televisions.” After a short pause he added, “Though they do run the risk of setting themselves on fire.”</p><p>“Cissnei and Emma seem to be taking on either a big sister or motherly thing with me,” Cloud said, then sipped his wine. “It’s a little odd, but sorta nice.”</p><p>“The Turks are a family, and you’re the youngest,” he said. “Sisterly or motherly is a whole lot better than either of them eyeing you up romantically.”</p><p>Cloud coughed. “Yeah, no. That sounds like it would complicate the hell out of things work-wise. That and I don’t think I’m even attracted to women.”</p><p>“Why do you think I didn’t offer you a job as my aide?” Rufus said. “I’d spend a good part of my work day flirting with you or thinking of fucking you and never get anything done.”</p><p>He was again amused when Cloud blushed.</p><p>Shortly thereafter they were in the bedroom, with him shaving their youngest brother. He could mention that there were other ways to deal with hair removal, but all of those were either painful or long lasting or permanent, and then their little ritual would cease to happen. Cloud’s cock was hard and twitching, begging for attention, but he successfully resisted.</p><p>Rufus pulled a card and said, “Huh. Doctor and Patient again.”</p><p>“Uh… I’ll be the patient,” Cloud said.</p><p>Which meant he was willing to be bound into place and have a ring gag shoved in his mouth. Excellent. Cloud would be nice and helpless and they could torture him a little and hopefully he would love it as much as they did in that position.</p><p>Rufus went to the wall and kicked the metal plate, revealing the exam table, which he pulled out and locked into place. Once Cloud had been wiped down and lotioned up he went to sit on the table. Once Lazard got back Cloud said, “Doctor, I seem to be having a couple of issues.”</p><p>Rufus put on a serious face and nodded. “Explain, please.”</p><p>“Well, uh…” Cloud looked down for a moment. “I seem to be having issues with tightness, in, uh…” He had to pause briefly to get his snickering under control. “Tightness in my, well, rectum. And my throat. I sometimes have trouble … there.”</p><p>“I see. Well, clearly we’re going to have to an in-depth examination of these issues,” Rufus said, then huffed a laugh when Cloud started snickering again. “If you’d please position yourself bent over the table, we can get started.”</p><p>“Yes, Doctor, of course.” Cloud slipped off the table and turned around, and bent over to let the table hold his weight.</p><p>“Arms to the sides, please,” Rufus said. “We need to make sure you won’t move around too much during the examination. Some people react a little oddly.”</p><p>“I see,” Cloud said, then extended his arms out so that Rufus could buckle his wrists into the restraints.</p><p>Lazard got out a set of latex gloves and lubricant in readiness.</p><p>“Excellent,” Rufus said. “Legs apart, please.” Once Cloud’s ankles were likewise restrained, Rufus continued with, “Assistant, I think in this case… A manual examination, with careful stretching before you do your test. Also, a sleeve. Some patients have emissions.”</p><p>“Yes, Doctor.” He fitted a sleeve over Cloud’s cock, pumped lube onto his fingers and stepped forward, placing the bottle at the corner of the table, then started circling Cloud’s anus and pressing lightly against it.</p><p>Rufus produced the ring gag and said, “This will seem a little odd, Patient, but it’s necessary to keep your mouth open during this part of things. Some patients have difficulty in keeping theirs open for long stretches.”</p><p>“R-Right.”</p><p>Rufus carefully fit the gag into place and buckled it, then slid a finger into their younger brother’s mouth. Cloud twitched, presumably at the feeling of someone stroking his tongue. Lazard kept circling and pressing, slowly pressing in on each revolution, wondering if Rufus was giving their brother the same treatment he had gone through, stroking back just far enough to barely invoke a gag reflex, then backing off, starting to train it out of Cloud.</p><p>“If this bothers you too much, brother, shake one of your arms,” Rufus said, momentarily dropping character.</p><p>Cloud nodded as best he could.</p><p>Lazard finally pushed in fully, sliding a single finger into Cloud’s ass and working the right ring of muscle, encouraging it to relax, then two fingers, then three. Cloud was starting to push back against him, which made him chuckle silently, so he nodded to Rufus and stripped off his gloves and discarded them.</p><p>As Lazard lubed himself up Rufus said, “Let’s try a more in-depth examination, shall we?”</p><p>He pressed the head of his cock against Cloud’s anus and started pressing forward, wresting a groan from Cloud, which was quickly followed by Rufus guiding his cock through the gag’s ring. The smirk on his face said that Cloud was drooling nicely.</p><p>He started thrusting when Cloud indicated he was ready, then harder when their youngest brother sharply jerked back within the confines of his restraints. He already had an idea of what Cloud would like, so he aimed for that, and aimed to nudge his prostate with every stroke. Rufus had his hands dug into Cloud’s hair, holding his head steady against the violation of his mouth, which made Lazard remember just how that felt, the helplessness, the measure of trust involved…</p><p>Cloud’s ass was hot and tight around his cock, clenching when he brushed the prostate, which made him want to thrust harder, press harder with his fingers, but he kept it to what he knew Cloud was all right with. His own balls kept gently slapping Cloud’s ass, and when Cloud finally let out a long groan and started to orgasm, he allowed himself to let go, to pump his brother’s ass full, which triggered Rufus to let go.</p><p>Cloud was sent off a bit later after a hungry deep kiss, to get his rest before his mission.</p>
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</div><p>Cosmo Canyon was … strange. It was all rock and canyons or valleys and plateaus, though why there was such a huge forest covering some of those plateaus he didn’t understand. The guards at the entrance to the settlement were defensive and on the verge of hostile after recognizing the suits, though Tuesti was the one nominally leading the group.</p><p>Tuesti was very polite and earnest in his request to consult with those in the know about alternative sources of power generation, eyeing an odd tower as he did so. One of the guards ducked back behind the gate and out of their eyesight.</p><p>While waiting Emma and Cissnei had a non-verbal discussion that Cloud could only partly understand. Instead he eyed up that tower himself, watching the four equidistant, angled blades slowly revolve, presumably pushed by the breeze that high up. One of their ways to generate power? He also roamed his eyes over the rock formations, interested in the banding of colour. Browns, reddish-browns, reds, and oranges, even yellow shading into a much paler colour almost like sand. It was pleasing to the eye, but at the same time a bit monotonous. He longed to see green, or purple, or something bluer than the sky.</p><p>The guard eventually slipped back through the gate and nodded to his fellows. “Follow me,” he said.</p><p>Tuesti nodded back and complied, with the Turks following silently. They were led up a long staircase cut into the rock, though a set of poles with a signboard hung between them (which had “Cosmo Canyon” on it), and off to the right toward an open fire. There were stalls butted up against higher sections of rock, and ladders everywhere. Homes (presumably) were on small plateaus or attached to the sides and braced with wood.</p><p>An L-shaped carved staircase went higher, leading to a dark cave entrance, and a switchback stair above it, leading from one entrance to another. At the very top, just barely visible from his angle, looked to be a giant telescope.</p><p>Cloud did his best to pay attention, not only to what Tuesti was saying once they were joined by some of the natives who were not guards (because he could learn from <em>how</em> Tuesti approached things), but also to keep an eye out for any trouble, attempting to extend his awareness rather than so obviously panning around. He was at least pleased to see that Cosmo Canyon’s residents wore colourful clothing.</p><p>He was shocked to see that not all residents were human. There were large, lion-like creatures with tails that flamed at the tip, several feet tall at the shoulder, and they could speak just as well as any human, though their voices were gravelly and rumbled through their chests. There were only two of them visible.</p><p>“We would be grateful for detailed blueprints,” Tuesti was saying, “so that we may implement them and move Shinra Company away from mako reactors.”</p><p>“We’ve heard even here that someone has destroyed at least two,” a so far nameless man said. He looked somewhere between middle-aged and elderly to Cloud’s eyes.</p><p>“Yes,” Tuesti said agreeably. “And that presents a problem. We have been investigating alternatives for some time, even before two reactors were destroyed. The destruction makes this more urgent. Many people could die if they are without power, from riots alone. The sooner we can transition from mako reactors to something less controversial the better, which is where your assistance would factor in. Costa del Sol also does not have a mako reactor, but that is a vacation town, a place for tourists, and they do not require much in the way of power that cannot be served by deadwood torches or tallow candles.”</p><p>“With your science department?” one of them asked skeptically.</p><p>Tuesti side-stepped that to a degree. “With the way the department is transitioning, yes.”</p><p>He nearly snorted at the delicate response. It wouldn’t be politic, he supposed, for Director Tuesti to straight-up say, “We purged the entire department and are starting over completely, as most of the scientists have been executed for unethical and immoral practices.”</p><p>Tuesti managed to gain some measure of approval, because they were allowed to poke around the settlement during a break from the talks. The pub was boring and tiny, and dining hall was small and could only fit maybe four people at a time, and the inn’s sleeping room had a whopping two beds and a long sofa. The shops did not carry much of interest, and certainly nothing in the way of swords he might fancy. Odds were he would have to go to Wutai for that, and he’d be a fool to do that so soon after the war.</p><p>Cloud was tempted to just sleep in the helicopter, as they had come in a larger model that had fold-out beds. They wouldn’t be the least bit comfortable, but the helicopter also had a cramped room with a chemical toilet and a shower head. The odds of doing damage to oneself was high, but it was useful in a pinch. There was a tiny sink, but water storage was shared with the shower.</p><p>Cosmo Canyon’s idea of toilets was to stick a small shack lined up with the edge of whatever level of cliff it was on, with an angled shaft cored out so that any wastes would slide down and drop to the ground far below. As ugly as it seemed, it was possibly better than chamber pots. The inn sleeping room had a closet of a room on the outside wall for that purpose, so at least none of them would have to stumble around by flickering firelight looking to relive themselves and accidentally tumble over the edge to their deaths. Because, no fences, completely against common sense.</p><p>That night Tuesti took one bed, Cissnei the other, and Emma took the sofa. Cloud was on first watch, which was fine. Cissnei was up next, which meant he would get a bed for the remainder of the night.</p><p>Two days later they were flying back to Midgar. The science people there had handed over plans for an experimental energy producer they called solar power, as well as a theoretical way to store excess energy against inclement weather and night time periods.</p><p>He hoped that they worked. The very idea of going back to more primitive means if someone destroyed the reactors in Midgar before they were ready to decommission them appalled him. Pit toilets and barrel baths were not his idea of fun, nor was having to climb flight after flight of stairs (though it would help to keep him in good shape).</p><p>That he knew damn well his two fellow Turks had gone all sneaky ninja and obtained photographs of that bladed tower (perhaps other things) meant they should have brought back additional methods. The data storage cards in their PHSs were small enough that Emma could slide them into her earrings with no one the wiser, just in case her phone should “go missing”, or Cissnei into the enameled pin she wore on her lapel.</p><p>Cloud still needed a lot of training to become so stealthy and sneaky. The VR room could only do so much with limited AI “people” wandering fake settings, and there were no other rookie Turks for him to practice against, either as stalker or target.</p><p>On arrival they parted ways with Tuesti and headed for the Turks floor so they could be verbally debriefed by Tseng, then sent off to their desks to handle the written ones. Cloud had not done much aside from guard and learn by observing and listening, so he felt a bit useless. He had never been much of a talker. Rude managed just fine barely saying a word, but he was also quite tall and imposing, which Cloud would never be.</p><p>He much preferred training missions where he could learn more active things, such as improving his combat skills or stealth. He wondered what exactly Tseng was reporting to Rufus, and then wondered if he should ask his brother. Were there missions where the whole point was to stalk infantrymen on <em>their</em> training missions and not be caught doing it? Or sabotage against them, again without getting caught?</p><p>It wasn’t like the average Turk would be doing missions against SOLDIERs, right? So missions against trained people who weren’t enhanced would make sense.</p><p>He finished up his report, submitted it, and beelined for his room so he could take an honest-to-Gaia shower and luxuriate under the warm flow. Once done he got dressed in a new suit, then added the old one to his garment bag and hauled the whole thing off to the pickup rack. They were dismissed until the next day, so Cloud shot off a message to Rufus asking if he could use the VR room and got back an affirmative.</p><p>He checked his weapons, ammunition, materia, and cards, then headed out.</p><p>Shortly thereafter his brother was letting him into his office and giving him a kiss. “You sound tired.”</p><p>“Yeah. Having to keep my focus up for days in a row was just tiring, that and not having decent facilities.” He noticed there were still boxes of documentation stacked up and shook his head. “Uh, question.”</p><p>“Sure,” Rufus said as he returned to his chair.</p><p>Cloud took one of the visitor’s seats before saying, “To your knowledge, are there missions where new Turks test their skills against the infantrymen? Like, stealth or sabotage?”</p><p>“Yes, though I’m not sure when you’ll be getting to that. I take it VR sessions are starting to be too easy, but you’re still not skilled enough to play cat and mouse with your fellow Turks.”</p><p>“Mm-hm. It’s an odd plateau.” He rubbed his eyes. “I feel kinda useless at times. You know, the missions where I’m observing and listening and trying to learn stuff like political maneuvering and interrogation and—all the talking stuff.”</p><p>“From what I could uncover, you were never much of a talker,” Rufus said agreeably.</p><p>He nodded. “Didn’t exactly like or trust anyone enough to bother talking. It’s easier if I’m wearing sunglasses, but…”</p><p>Rufus smiled comfortingly. “I have no doubt whatsoever that Tseng will note that you are not well-suited for missions where you need to talk a lot. You’re not all that different than Rude in this respect. You would always be paired with someone who is good at it. Don’t worry too much, Cloud. Tseng’s been a Turk for a long time and he knows his people.”</p><p>He exhaled quietly, feeling better for having heard that. “I should probably stop taking up your work time, brother. Hit the VR room, send a quick message to Lazard that I’m back.”</p><p>“All right. And if you’re up for it, come to dinner with us. I’d love to have you with us every night, but of course Lazard is correct. You need time for yourself, and time to hang out with your fellow Turks.”</p><p>He got up and stretched. “Yeah. Though I have to keep turning down offers to go drinking. I just realized,” he said as he headed for the door deeper into Rufus’ territory, “that I’ve had this PHS all this time and not once have I actually called someone or been called.”</p><p>Rufus laughed. “Wait, before you head in there.”</p><p>Cloud turned back curiously, then caught something his brother tossed at him. “Hm?” he said, staring down at a bangle.</p><p>“An Escort Guard. Have fun with it.”</p><p>“Huh. Thank you, Rufus.” He returned the smile his brother shot him, then exited. The bangle had three sets of linked slots, which meant he could level more materia concurrently. And if he was lucky it might have some added benefits to it. He slipped it onto his free wrist and slotted various materia in, ones he’d been meaning to evolve, then sent a quick message to Lazard about his return. He entered the VR room and set the scenario, then fought.</p>
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</div><p>“Sir, the vice president just sent down documentation that might be the oddest possible answer to the shooter,” he heard a man say. Cloud looked up from his desk to see Maur (martial arts primary) waving a report around in front of Tseng.</p><p>“How so?” Tseng replied, taking the report.</p><p>“Notes on one Vincent Valentine, Turk,” Maur said. “Killed, or so they say, while on protection duty in one of Hojo’s labs. Nibelheim.”</p><p>Tseng actually frowned, then headed into his office, crooking a finger at Maur to follow.</p><p>Of course, that meant Cloud couldn’t eavesdrop on any more of the conversation. He simply wasn’t enhanced enough for his hearing to be good enough. He sighed and went back to the book on helicopter controls, trying to memorize the layout of a cockpit and the controls one contained. Tseng had promised training in a VR room soon, so he was trying to be proactive and getting what he could burned into his brain.</p><p>It was difficult when some of the people who had been Turks the longest were called into Tseng’s office for various, unknown reasons. If there was one thing he <em>had</em> learned since the incident was that not every commanding officer was a dick. Or rather, not every adult was a dick, and more specifically, to him. Rufus and Lazard let him know the things he could be told at his security level, and he accepted that just because he was curious didn’t make it his right to know.</p><p>That and he had been so flustered and recovering from humiliation on being inducted into the Turks that he was quiet and deferential. He didn’t make waves, asked rather than demanded to know things, and slowly came around to the idea that there were people in power he could trust.</p><p>‘Seriously, though,’ he thought. ‘Hojo had a lab in Nibelheim? What the fuck was that about?’ As much as he would like to believe the people in that town were weird because of an immoral, ethics-deficient scientist, he knew it was extremely unlikely.</p><p>‘Vincent Valentine,’ he thought. It meant absolutely nothing to him. A gun primary, if he was being investigated, even if reported dead. If Hojo was involved, anything was possible, right? If Hojo had experimented on the man, well, he could understand wanting revenge. Even so, how could anyone be that high up, with nothing to support them, long enough to get off a perfect shot, a one-hit kill, spraying a man’s brains all over the floor in a cone-shaped spread.</p><p>He had heard rumors of the “failed” SOLDIERs, Genesis and Angeal, that they each had a single wing. But that was Hollander’s work, it was said, not Hojo’s. ‘Doesn’t mean Hojo didn’t have his grubby hands involved in giving his test subjects extra appendages,’ he thought. ‘Thank the gods I was never anywhere near the man prior to his death. I might have ended up with tentacles, or worse.</p><p>‘Huh, now I’m wondering what actually happened to the infantrymen who were badly injured and just never returned to duty. Were they quietly sent to the science department?’ He grimaced at the idea and shook his head. He needed to get his head back into what he was trying to learn. Even that attempt was shattered when Reno swung by his desk with a, “Training time, yo!”</p><p>He gathered up his things and followed Reno (just Reno, oddly enough) and ended up on 49F, the SOLDIER floor, and led to a room labeled VR-08. The SOLDIERs lounging around all looked up at the intrusion, but dismissed them just as quickly, once it was realized they were Turks.</p><p>“Just think, yo,” Reno said cheerfully as he set up the simulation. “Once you got the piloting thing down, then we can have fun with rapid rappelling down to the ground, or jumpin’ out with a parachute on.”</p><p>“In other words, you’re looking forward to seeing if I freak the fuck out,” he said dryly.</p><p>“You got it,” Reno said as he hopped into the helicopter and took the co-pilot’s seat. “It’s half the fun! Some people actually piss themselves,” Reno said with an oddly non-malicious chuckle.</p><p>Cloud settled into the pilot’s seat and started checking over the cockpit, the instrumentation, and how well he could reach all of it. One interesting side effect of mako treatments, as explained by his brothers, was that he would reach his maximum height faster than normal. He’d never be taller than if he had let time do its thing, but he would get there faster.</p><p>Sessions in the VR room helped to keep in sync between his reflexes, strength, and what his mind thought they were. From what they could tell he’d be lucky to reach just shy of 173cm. Cloud was thrilled, though, because that was above average height. Not by much, but at least he couldn’t technically be called short. He might end up a little taller than Reno, which seemed weird, but closer to his brothers.</p><p>“All right, you taken everything in?” Reno asked and, when he nodded, said, “Then yo, let’s try a test flight.”</p>
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</div><p>“Vincent Valentine? Seriously?” he asked.</p><p>Rufus shrugged. “So far it’s the only thing I’ve run across in all these damn files that could come close to explaining that good of a shooter, one who’d potentially have a grudge against Hojo. The only thing the official records have is that he was there on protection duty during a project run by Hojo and another scientist, though that scientist’s name has been redacted. Gast was on it for a while, but left to go do field research. Valentine was listed as killed, no explanation.”</p><p>“But Hojo was a mad scientist and might have used Valentine for something,” he said, nodding slightly. “Still…”</p><p>“Depends on if he did, and what he did,” Rufus said. “Based on testimony Hojo has left numerous test subjects locked up for long periods of time. This would be excessive, but again, we have no idea what he might have done. In theory, Valentine eventually got free and, as a Turk, did his research, then took vengeance.”</p><p>“I suppose,” he said slowly. “Doesn’t necessarily tie into the reactors.”</p><p>“It could if Valentine decided there were things Shinra was doing they shouldn’t be. Depending on what Valentine looks like right now, assuming it is him, he might have been able to don the suit and wander around the building. A lot of people wouldn’t give him a second thought. They’re too intimidated by the Turks.”</p><p>“He’d be close to sixty, wouldn’t he?”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “Records stated he was twenty-seven when he was killed, so he’d be … fifty-two now.”</p><p>“And if it is him, and Hojo experimented on him…” Lazard shrugged. “I can only hope that if it was him, and it’s him destroying reactors, that he’ll give us the breathing room to get alternatives set up, so that this city doesn’t descend into rioting, mass deaths, and martial law.”</p><p>Rufus took the potatoes off the heat and dumped them into a colander so they could drain, then dumped them back into the pot so he could mash them with a little garlic.</p><p>Lazard hopped up and started browning ground meat. Cloud would there soon for dinner. “What about the plans brought back from Cosmo Canyon?”</p><p>“I’m envisioning the Shinra Building covered in those panels,” Rufus said. “We’d have to set aside floors to hold the batteries. But if we could get this building transitioned over we could decommission Reactor Zero, then move toward doing the same for the buildings in the city, the roofs, at least, and decommission the others sector by sector. And if we can figure out those towers the Turks brought back pictures of, well. This building is tall enough that we might be able to fit those in somewhere, because wind doesn’t just stop at night. Or even on the barrier wall around the city.”</p><p>“If they’re using wind to turn blades that turns something else to produce electricity, can’t the same be done for water?” he asked.</p><p>“I don’t see why not.” Rufus got out the covered glass dishes sized for individual portions and set the lids aside. “There are plenty of rivers, the odd waterfall, ocean tides. No reason they couldn’t do essentially the same thing. I’ve noticed, going over the reactor sites, that the land is always barren.”</p><p>He snorted. “You mean like the dead zone around Midgar?” He turned off the heat and added gravy to the meat, along with carrots, a little honey, and corn. He mixed that together and started spooning it into the dishes.</p><p>Rufus hummed. “Avalanche may not be entirely wrong. If the reactors really are sucking the life out of the ground, we can’t afford to keep them. As it is nothing grows here, we have to import everything.” He moved in with the pot of mashed potatoes and started spooning those on top of the meat mixture. The lids went on and the dishes were shoved into the oven.</p><p>Lazard moved in to steal a kiss from his brother, which ended up with him pushed up against the refrigerator for a thorough ravishing, then released with a smirk.</p><p>“On a side note, I discovered Sephiroth’s parentage in those documents.”</p><p>“Oh?”</p><p>“Professor Hojo and Lucretia Crescent. We don’t have anything on her in the official archives, but there was plenty in the offline files from the science department. She worked on the Jenova Project, as well as Project S.”</p><p>“S for Sephiroth?”</p><p>Rufus nodded. “She’s the redacted one in the official archives. Looks like Hojo forgot about the offline documents, or didn’t spend much time purging things from them. I don’t know if Sephiroth’s even aware of his parentage. I’ve been contemplating sending him a message about it. Or rather, having you let him know, as you’re director of SOLDIER.”</p><p>“I can do that, if you can give me copies of what’s relevant.”</p><p>“Of course, brother. Hojo liked to keep handwritten journals, at least during those two projects. Hojo and Crescent apparently had a relationship, had a child together, and that child was used in their experiment.”</p><p>He grimaced in disgust. “That is sick. What kind of monsters would experiment on their own child?”</p><p>Rufus took the question as rhetorical. “Apparently, the projects were done in Nibelheim. I’m thinking I should send the Turks out there, to check Shinra Manor, assuming Tseng doesn’t ask me first, due to the Valentine connection.”</p><p>“Do you think Avalanche would have infiltrated the place? You did nudge them at the Mt Nibel reactor, the first, but… Looking at all of that, it seems strange that it was the first, until you consider that we now know Hojo had a lab there. Well, the three of them, prior to Professor Gast leaving. A mako reactor is simply too much power for a small town like Nibelheim. Even condensing activities wouldn’t need so much. All that leftover power had to go somewhere.”</p><p>“It languished for decades, then,” he said. “But it matters not now, not with the destruction of the reactor. Sending Turks would probably be a good idea. SOLDIERs are not known for their information gathering skills.” He could only hope that things would turn out all right, that they could move fast enough, that there was someone capable—Tuesti, even—of dealing with those plans and photographs and coming up with an answer they could implement.</p><p>“If we’re lucky, alternative power sources could fall under Tuesti. I’d say it counts as urban development,” Rufus said with a smile. “It’s not like he has a lot to do in a city that’s technically completed. If his department can make construction plans, manufacture the pieces, and put it all together, why not these solar panels? Why not wind or water power? And of course, the batteries as backup. We can hope.”</p><p>“We can hope,” he echoed. “Because otherwise we’re going to have to scour the planet to find people capable of taking what we got from Cosmo Canyon and making it happen, moving it forward. We have no hard evidence that those reactors are killing the land, but there’s enough circumstantial evidence to be worried.” He glanced into the oven to check on the food, then the clock.</p><p>Rufus responded by setting the table, sans plates. “I would say Scarlet is the next target, when we’re in a better position. Heidegger is an idiot, but Public Security is less of a problem.”</p><p>“I don’t think Scarlet would be stopped without an explosive collar on her that accidentally-on-purpose got triggered. Or some kind of sweet she fancies, jacked full of a poison so strong no Esuna will save her, and no healing spell can keep up with. Unfortunately, that carries a lot of risk of collateral damage to the person or people preparing the present.”</p><p>Rufus shot him a suspicious look. “Are you being alliterative on purpose?”</p><p>He laughed. “No, it just came out that way. Should it have come out of me differently? As in, not from my mouth, brother?”</p><p>“You are so juvenile at times.”</p><p>“You love me anyway,” Lazard said, smirking.</p><p>“Yes, I do,” Rufus said with an entirely fake, long-suffering sigh.</p><p>“How do you think Cloud’s been faring with the Turks?”</p><p>Rufus smiled. “Well. We had a talk the other day where he expressed his … dislike … for talking, essentially. I reminded him of Rude. I pointed out that Tseng knows his people, and wouldn’t push Cloud into a position of politics and negotiation and all of that. He seemed relieved. From what I’ve picked up from him and the reports I get from Tseng, I think he’s doing well. He’s actively trying to become more skilled, he’s got a family in his fellow Turks, willing to help him gain those skills, and really, I’m not seeing any of the behavior his Public Security records complained of. But can you really blame him if he was being like that with them?”</p><p>“Not at all. Public Security is a machine. You either fall in line or get ground up in the gears to either side. As horrible as it is to say it, getting mistaken by Palmer for a slum whore is probably the best thing that could have happened to him, because you noticed and we acted.”</p><p>He heard a snort and looked away from Rufus to see Cloud standing there, a twisted smile on his face. “And as grossed out as I am to say it, I’d have to agree with you, brother.”</p><p>He smiled warmly. “You hungry? Dinner is almost ready.”</p><p>“Very much so. Reno had me on flight training today. I feel like I must have covered the entire planet ten times over.” Cloud reached up to massage his temples. “And plowed into a bunch of mountains, crashed into the sea, and any number of other scenarios to try to condition a response into me that isn’t blind panic.”</p><p>“It’s something of a well-proven tactic,” Rufus said. “Get you to the point of numbness so your brain can start looking for solutions, rather than wasting your energy and intelligence on things sure to get you killed. In case Reno didn’t think to mention, you get at least a week between those, so you can adjust and/or recover. Fear is a way for your body to tell you to, you know, do something so you don’t die? Not a good idea to condition fear out of a person. Hence the breaks.”</p><p>“And so I can recover from the headache,” Cloud muttered. “I like Reno. He’s fun, he knows his stuff, and he doesn’t talk down to me. But he’s a handful. He seems to have enough energy for ten people most of the time.”</p><p>Lazard snickered and checked on the food again.</p><p>“You said you wanted to try a normal treatment next,” Rufus said.</p><p>“Yeah.”</p><p>He didn’t see a problem with it. Cloud had responded better than they had to the smaller-than-normal test injections. It might have something to do with how mako-rich Nibelheim was, despite being all the way down the mountain from what used to be the reactor. There were natural fountains there, he had heard, something you would never find anywhere near Midgar. “We’ll give you one like we take,” he said. “And monitor you very closely.”</p><p>Cloud shrugged. “Sure.”</p><p>Cloud’s trust made his chest feel warm. A faint ding saw Lazard turning to get dinner from the oven and set the dishes on a rack. Rufus popped open a jar and poured the contents into a pan for warming, and Cloud nosed on over to see what they would be eating.</p><p>“It sure smells good.”</p><p>“And hopefully it tastes as good,” Rufus said. “I remember one time we made a savory pie that sounded interesting. It smelled drool-worthy, we couldn’t wait to try it.”</p><p>“Thing was bland and boring and it was a total waste of the time it took us to make it,” he said. “I’ve never been so disappointed in food as that pie. Betrayed, even.”</p><p>“Then I can expect never to be blindsided by it,” Cloud said. “Good.”</p><p>They were shortly seated at the table and eating, and Cloud hummed happily after his first bite. “You two are fantastic. Thank you for another amazing meal. I really do need to learn how to cook, if only so I can try to return the favor.”</p><p>“So pick something to try and we’ll do so this weekend, assuming you’re feeling up to it,” he said.</p><p>“Absolutely. It’s not like I can practice where I live,” Cloud replied.</p><p>“You were a fan of Sephiroth back when, right?” Rufus asked casually.</p><p>Cloud stared at Rufus for a moment, then said, “You already know that. I distinctly recall mentioning it at that … meeting. Why?”</p><p>“I’m curious to know your impression now.”</p><p>Cloud let out an explosive breath. “That he might be heavily enhanced, but he’s still just a man. He came across as very reserved, almost wary in a way. I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s lonely after the way the two people closest to him fucked off without a word, then started killing innocent people. I’ve started to think that to be a hero is to live a tortured existence, and I want no part of it. At least, not one where I’d be known as a hero. Working from the shadows sounds far more sensible.”</p><p>“I admit I’m glad to hear that,” Lazard said. “Our need to be sure you know how to defend yourself far outweighs the desire to simply keep you safe.”</p><p>“Hence the Turks,” Rufus said quietly.</p><p>Cloud sort of smiled. “I’m learning a lot. And learning that I’d probably bash my head against the wall a lot if I had to be in a position like you two have. You know, like executive meetings. I don’t think I’d be the right person to head a department. Though I suppose generally not liking people would be a plus in that situation.”</p><p>He and Rufus both laughed at the assessment. “You’re not entirely wrong about that, brother,” he said, “though at least we can say that the people of our respective departments aren’t that bad. Well…”</p><p>Rufus shot him a knowing look, so he admitted it, if only so Cloud would be privy.</p><p>“Right. Not all bad,” he said, looking at Cloud. “But there is bad. You remember how you were treated at times, by your peers here?”</p><p>“…Yeah.”</p><p>“The pushing and shoving for position, to gain the attention of those in charge, to show off, to push others down out of sight. It happens in the SOLDIER cadet program, too. Some of those who succeed to SOLDIER are…”</p><p>“They’re bullies,” Cloud said flatly.</p><p>“Yes, brother. And I do my damnedest to see those sorts sent on missions that will hopefully get them killed. I have no use for SOLDIERs who will terrorize their peers, the civilians, cause unnecessary collateral damage…” He sighed. “I have yet to be able to alter the pre-SOLDIER program to crack down on that behavior. Rufus…?”</p><p>“I could,” Rufus said agreeably. “There have been so many other things to address, but I could. Maybe another round of blackmail, with another set of varying demands. He would choose that to avoid harsher consequences.”</p><p>“And because you’ve already managed a purge of the science department,” Cloud said, “this would look minuscule in comparison and barely worth noting?”</p><p>Rufus practically beamed at Cloud.</p><p>“I don’t even understand why it’s like that in Public Security,” Cloud continued. “Except, maybe just that Heidegger is an asshole and likes stepping on people, so that kind of behavior is favored. I mean, we were supposedly peacekeeping troops. The only thing anyone should have been competing for was promotions, and in a sane world that’d be determined on merit. But I’m not that stupid. I knew that back in Nibelheim, when everyone closed their eyes or looked away. I have better examples now.”</p><p>He thought perhaps he should steer the conversation away from such weighty matters. Too much at a time was … too much. “I understand that they might be sending people to Nibelheim again.”</p><p>Cloud looked shocked for a moment, then said, “What, Shinra Manor?”</p><p>“It’s possible Hojo left things there,” Rufus said. “I don’t know if Tseng would choose you to be on the team if the Turks went.”</p><p>“People used to dare each other to go inside, but…” Cloud shook his head. “I don’t think anyone really knows what the inside is like aside from potentially sneaking peeks through the ground-floor windows. I can’t imagine anyone from Shinra would have invited a town elder in there, and I don’t remember any rumors or fond reminiscences about the ‘good old days’ or whatever in connection to the place. I kind of doubt Daddy Shinra was throwing wild parties there when he could be doing that here in a lot more comfort and with easier access for his scum-sucking guests.”</p><p>“Avalanche went there to blow the reactor,” he said. “They might have gone into the manor, stolen anything of worth. Any team sent there might not find anything.”</p><p>Cloud shrugged. “I do hope I’m not sent. I find the idea of being pestered by Tifa again tiresome. It’s not amusing or flattering that I’m suddenly interesting.”</p><p>A glance at Rufus when Cloud ducked his head for more food showed that his brother was already making plans to ensure Cloud didn’t get chosen for any mission to his hometown.</p><p>They finished up the meal sharing salacious rumors about various idiots in Shinra Company, then repaired to the bedroom, where they all stripped down. Cloud planted himself on the bed once things were set up and watched with a heated gaze as Rufus shaved him.</p><p>“What shall we do this evening?” Cloud asked almost absently.</p><p>“I’m voting for simply enjoying each other,” he said. “No cards.”</p><p>Rufus hummed as he began cleaning Cloud up. “I don’t think we’ve taken the time to worship Cloud, brother.”</p><p>He nodded. “We have not.”</p><p>“Worship?”</p><p>His eyes panned up Cloud’s body. “Yes. Where we go over every inch of you with loving attention, drive you mad with desire, then drain you dry, or let you fuck one of us, whichever you prefer.”</p><p>Cloud looked contemplative, then said, “I’ll leave it up to you two.”</p>
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</div><p>The world had a rainbow sheen to it shortly after he was given a normal treatment, an oil slick of translucent colour. His brothers’ hair seemed to have gone faintly green, possibly waving around like ocean plants. Or how he thought ocean plants would wave around if he had ever gone swimming in the ocean. And then it was blue, and orange, and red. He faithfully reported this to his brothers, who had the gall to look amused. “This is a bit like being drunk, I imagine. I’ve only ever gotten to the slightly woozy stage of drinking and stopped, but I can imagine this as being somewhere down that road. More woozy, a bit light-headed and … swaying?”</p><p>His brothers laughed at him, not unkindly.</p><p>“I feel … spacey. Would it be like this in space, do you think?” He looked around the room and wondered why things were wavering, then reminded himself of the injection. “This is within … uh…”</p><p>“It’s normal enough,” Lazard told him with a nod. “Others have experienced it.”</p><p>“Good. Good.” He examined the grain in the nearby table. Which was odd. Most things in the Shinra building weren’t organic. Even the plants were fakes. “Is this stuff real?” he asked, reaching out to trace a finger over the surface, following the lines.</p><p>“Yes,” Rufus said.</p><p>The weird floaty feeling made everything feel … surreal? He thought that was the term. He had been doing a lot better at lots of things since the incident. Reading many things. Nothing like the pitiful selection in the backwater. He was getting a lot better with fighting, combat. He no longer felt like the weak and useless thing (except for being a cock slut) in the backwater. There were plenty of people who could easily kick his ass in a spar (or a fight), but he was improving.</p><p>He had plenty of support from his brothers. From the Turks. Even Tseng with his mostly dead expression. The man had a heart in there somewhere. He just couldn’t afford to show it. Turks had be as unassailable as possible. It was part of the job. Outside a sanctuary Cloud shouldn’t have a heart. Much. No obvious weakness. Practice would help. Sometimes, Turks had to do vile things. He had not experienced it, but he knew it.</p><p>Someday, he might have to. With the way his brothers were cleaning up, he might not have to. He could hope. He would if he had to. That was being a Turk. Their burden. It wasn’t just cool suits and sunglasses. “Why is it real?”</p><p>“I wanted more than marble and cold,” Rufus said. “That wood might be dead, but… It’s beautiful, and it brings life here.”</p><p>“It is beautiful,” he replied, back to staring at the grain, the bands of colour, the gloss.</p><p>“It’s been an hour,” Lazard said.</p><p>Cloud blinked and looked at him. “An hour? It’s only been a few minutes, hasn’t it?”</p><p>Lazard shook his head. “You’re experiencing another fairly common side effect, Cloud. Nothing to worry about. Time seems to go by more quickly.”</p><p>“Then I definitely would not want to have sex like this. You would have to move in slow motion.”</p><p>His brothers laughed again. “It <em>would</em> make things very frustrating,” Rufus said.</p><p>“And not in a good way,” Lazard added.</p><p>They didn’t want to let him sleep this time. Not with a normal dosage. They wanted him awake for the four hours. For him it might seem like nothing. But them, probably not. They were having a conversation of facial twitches. And keeping an eye on him. He wondered how they could even communicate properly. He was experiencing time differently. They might have experience. With each other, that was. With the injections.</p><p>He hummed and said, “Is there some kind of game we can play?”</p><p>His brothers exchanged a lightning quick look, then Rufus got up to fetch a short, wide box from a cabinet. Cloud could better understand the perception thing as his brother moved so quickly. Just not always. It must vary. Waver, like the walls.</p><p>It was a word game. They played on a board, with tiles. He honestly didn’t understand much more than making words. It did keep his attention focused, though. When the four hours was up (it felt like an hour max to him), they went to bed, with him sandwiched in the middle.</p>
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</div><p>He could feel the changes to an extent when they were in the VR room the next day. Everything was just a touch more, or a touch easier. He was a little stronger, had a bit more stamina, was just a bit more quick… It would be some time, they said, before his eyes would gain a glow, but they would start him on adjusting to contacts beforehand.</p><p>Still, the change, while not quantifiable, was noticeable. They were right, to do this slowly, to allow for a slower adjustment. He wondered just how poorly SOLDIERs handled things when they were given their first treatments. He had gone off into the clouds with his first real treatment, and that wasn’t anywhere near the level a SOLDIER would get. Thankfully no violent effects. But a SOLDIER?</p><p>He half shuddered at the thought as he wasted another simulated enemy. Imagine getting shot up or bathed in mako and having little to no control over your strength, reaction times… It made him wonder if the SOLDIER floors had super strong walls and benches and so forth, so freshly-treated SOLDIERs didn’t crush all the doorknobs, shatter doors, or wreak havoc on the plumbing fixtures.</p><p>He almost snickered at the idea of sitting down too hard on a toilet and cracking the porcelain.</p><p>“I think you have a handle on this,” Lazard said.</p><p>“I seem to. This is really helping. That and it’s not so much that it’s a real struggle to adjust to.”</p><p>“Excellent.”</p><p>Rufus entered the VR room, frowning. “Good news-bad news, brothers. The Gongaga reactor vanished.”</p><p>Lazard immediately killed the scenario and returned the room to its normal grey blandness. Cloud nearly slammed his blade into the floor, but managed to recover in time and not lose his balance completely.</p><p>“That leaves, what. Ft Condor, Junon, and Midgar,” he said.</p><p>“Correct. It’s possible Ft Condor might be given a miss because of the condor that nests there and the rather fanatical mercenaries who keep it safe,” Rufus said. “Not knowing how our mystery is vanishing reactors, I couldn’t begin to figure the odds of them vanishing an underwater reactor.”</p><p>“Gongaga is quite small as towns go,” Lazard said. “Should we be pushing to cover the places which now lack reactors first? It is true they can get by for many things with more primitive means, such as wood or coal, but… The sheer potential for loss here is frightening.”</p><p>Cloud frowned. “Some might think outfitting Midgar first would be, well, selfish. But, towns shouldn’t need a lot, right? They could be done quickly? When we had something, I mean. Like small teams to get things set up quickly, but properly. Then everyone could focus on Midgar so the reactor decommissions wouldn’t…”</p><p>“The question there is which reactor first,” Lazard said. “And I vote for Reactor Zero, because any teams would have a damn hard time manufacturing any components or pieces necessary if the Shinra building wasn’t functional, hand in hand with the sector that holds the manufactories.”</p><p>“I have a meeting with Tuesti on Monday,” Rufus said. “We’ll talk it over then, see where he is, where we can move, who best to help first. Right, I need to prepare more blackmail and a list of demands. I’ll let you two get back to working with Cloud’s recent enhancement.” He headed back out, closing the door softly behind him.</p><p>“Huh.”</p><p>“There are times I wish I had been able to obtain an education in certain things,” his brother said.</p><p>“…Why couldn’t you?” he asked uncertainly.</p><p>Lazard smiled briefly, bitterly. “My mother was a slum whore, Cloud. I had to claw my way up to respectability, authority, power, and the money to look the part. Rufus helped, once he became aware of me. He extended his hand, provided what I needed, resources, support, and a real family.”</p><p>It made him wonder just who Rufus’ mother was, and if she was “respectable” enough that Daddy Shinra claimed Rufus as his son and heir. He had stopped wondering exactly how Claudia Strife (if that even was her real name) had attracted Daddy Shinra long enough to have his child. He wasn’t even certain he cared where he really had been born. Midgar, Nibelheim, or somewhere along the way.</p><p>“Maybe now that the war is over I should consider learning things on the side.”</p><p>He hummed. “I don’t see why not.”</p><p>“Let me bring up the scenario again,” his brother said.</p>
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</div><p>Lunch was a pleasant affair, though Rufus wandered off again after an apology, back to working on his plans and schemes. It was fine. Cloud spent time with each of his brothers individually, depending, and what Rufus was doing was important. The sooner he could get things moving the better.</p><p>“Let’s decide on dinner?” Lazard suggested. “Then we could talk about how to make it.”</p><p>“Sure. Uh… That meat and vegetable pie we had the other day?”</p><p>Lazard nodded. “We can do that. And it’s a fairly simple dish to make. It’ll take a half hour maybe to get everything ready to go into the oven, maybe forty-five minutes. And then another half hour in the oven. It’s a nice dish, because you can freeze them after assembly. You can do that with a number of things.”</p><p>Cloud nodded. “Like bringing home a wolf carcass, skinning it so the pelt can be prepared, but the meat… Those got shared around, because one person couldn’t eat all of it right then. Or they were hung in a shed, or cut up and put on shelves in one. Needless to say, not a lot of people shared with us.”</p><p>“So you were the one hunting to feed yourself and your mother.”</p><p>“Yeah. I mean, I was out there a lot anyway, for various reasons. But I’d bring back my kills, skin them, bleed them dry, cut them into steaks, wrap them, and store them. She did the cooking, she handled the pelts. Knowing how to cook beyond sticking a skinned wolf over a fire is a kind of freedom.”</p><p>His brother hummed. “Food was an issue down in the slums. Sure, there were places you could get food in various sectors, but I don’t think anyone actually knew what most of it was made of. I don’t think that many people knew how to cook. If they did they often came from the outside, or they were employed by Shinra and just lived under the plate because it was cheaper.”</p><p>He gave Lazard a look. Maybe it was skeptical, maybe it was confused. “And safety?”</p><p>Lazard shrugged. “Plenty of people who work up here live down there, even with there being so much crime. Still, most of it centers on Wall Market in Sector Six, and hideouts for gangs in the areas between the sectors, in the walls themselves, or the old roadways. Some sectors are safer than others, and even working for Shinra, not everyone can afford to be up here.”</p><p>“Huh. Can we go for round two in the VR room? So long as we stop early enough to clean up before we start prepping dinner.”</p><p>“Of course, Cloud.”</p>
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</div><p>He did not go on the mission to Nibelheim to investigate Shinra Manor. The reports he got of what happened there seemed to make the place seem alternately boring and startling. Lots of monsters inside the manor. For some reason. Oddly, though, no reports of broken windows, ajar doors, or anything really that would let monsters inside. A chimney perhaps? And they were all baby monsters when they did the slide downward, hit the bottom, and bounced into whatever room?</p><p>Cloud snorted at the image. He couldn’t even remember if that manor had fireplaces, though he supposed it must. Nibelheim wasn’t exactly warm, even during the warmer months.</p><p>“They didn’t find much of anything,” Rufus reported over dinner. “There were a few things, papers stuffed into unlikely places, but by and large, nothing much. Either Avalanche went through the place, or our mystery shooter really did come from there and cleaned it out. The only thing of note was a room with coffins in it, down in the underground lab. All of them were empty.”</p><p>“Surprisingly,” Lazard commented.</p><p>“Surprisingly,” Rufus repeated. “We’ll just have to let it go and focus back on the things we need to work on. Tuesti told me he shouldn’t have a problem with figuring out how those towers work, and there already are battery models. As soon as he can get everything spec’d out and the schematics sent to manufacturing, we can move forward on at least getting Nibelheim, Corel, and Gongaga set with power.</p><p>“We’d have to decide on teams to handle installation, presumably with Tuesti’s help, since he would have a better idea on that, and then look to the solar panels,” Lazard said.</p><p>“Maybe setting up farms outside the dead zone and moving slum dwellers out to them to work the fields?” Cloud suggested.</p><p>“And blackmail demands. We have a lot of things to cover,” Rufus said, “so let’s get planning.”</p>
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